Crossing Over To Storybrooke
by SincerelyCarmillaKarnstein
Summary: Carmilla and Laura (Hollstein) have run away from Silas University like they had talked about. They are strangers in this new town. They meet Emma and Regina (SwanQueen), the Charmings, and others. How will they be accepted?
1. Chapter 1

Carmilla Karnstein and Laura Hollis chose to escape Silas together and leave everything they had known behind. They had talked about it when the situation became too much, but there were no longer talking. They were actually _doing_ it.

Laura had held Carmilla's hand since they had left and there wasn't a moment where their hands disentangled from one another. Although Laura was fit and could handle running for a long period of time, she was still only human. Carmilla had started to hold Laura in her arms as they walked towards an unknown destination.

The two of them had lost track of time and Carmilla was relieved when the place they visited had dark clouds looming overhead. Laura had fallen asleep in Carmilla's arms and Carmilla pulled her closer to her chest to keep her warm. The cold never affected Carmilla for she was dead. Her body might be dead, but her love for Laura was fully alive within her.

There was a flash of a green sign with silver letters that read, "Welcome to Storybrooke".

The moment that Carmilla crossed the invisible threshold, she felt something strange grip onto her. Whatever it was had surrounded her. She tried to turn around and leave, but he moment she stepped over the town line, she felt a burning sensation spread throughout her body. It was worse than the actual sun beating down on her skin. It was deep in her bones.

She almost dropped Laura in the process, but jumped back across the pure white line that was separating her from the world she knew. She had no other place to go, but forward. Carmilla kept her focus straight ahead as she held onto Laura tighter. No matter what happened here, Carmilla would protect Laura. She was her love, her life, her breath.

 **xxx**

The air seemed to change in Storybrooke or that's what Ruby had felt. She sensed that something was off. It felt this exact same way when Emma Swan had come into Storybrooke. Whoever had come into their town could be an enemy, so she prepared herself. She had thankfully learned to control her wolf and could transform at will. She noticed Granny could feel the change too. They were preparing themselves for whatever was coming.

 **xxx**

Carmilla let out a sigh of relief when she saw that it was night time in this sleepy town. She still kept her guard up and let her eyes sweep across the roads and buildings. Everything looked like it had come out of a TV show that resembled something like The Gilmore Girls.

The brunette kept her pace up until she saw a sign that read "Granny's Diner". She started to carefully wake up Laura. The dirty blonde hair was a mess and Carmilla helped her move the hair away from her face.

"Where are we, Carm?"

"Someplace named Storybrooke, Cupcake."

"As long as it's not Silas."

The two of them shared a look when Silas had been mentioned.

Laura was standing side by side with Carmilla. Their hands were interlocked once more.

"I could eat a horse right now!"

Carmilla chuckled, "I have been there and I doubt you can."

Laura laughed and it sounded like a tinkling of bells.

Carmilla didn't want to ever tire of that sound. Laura, as a whole, was what had brought her salvation, from her mother and herself. She was perfectly imperfect for her. Although Carmilla wanted Laura to be with her forever, she didn't want to burden her with the curse of being a vampire. Laura was meant to live in the light, not in the darkness, where Carmilla always was.

 **xxx**

Ruby heard the bell ring above the door and when the air blew it, she smelled something putrid. She turned her nose up at the smell. Her eyes had settled on the two newcomers that had entered.

One of them was wearing black from head to toe. She had long and curly dark hair with eyes that could pierce into anyone's soul. She wore a tank top that was thin and leather pants along with military boots.

The other one was the embodiment of good. She had dirty blonde hair and bright eyes. It was like an aura of light surrounded her. She wore a maroon colored hoodie with yellow lettering that read "Silas University" with light blue jeans and chuck taylors.

The young werewolf couldn't tell where the stench was coming from, but she could take a guess when she saw the brunette lock eyes with her. The stranger held her gaze when the other one smiled at her.

"Now Ruby, show some manners." Granny said as she kept a calm expression on her face despite being prepared for anything that might happen.

Ruby tried to relax, but she could feel her wolf begin to bare its teeth.

"You can take any seat you like." She said as she went to the back to grab a pitcher of coffee.

Granny waited behind the counter and found it very interesting that the booth they picked was the one that the Swan-Mills family sat in every morning to eat their breakfast.

Usually, Carmilla would have no problem with Laura sitting across from her, but this was a new place. She knew that danger could be lurking in every corner and that she would be ready for it.

Laura snuggled in close to Carmilla to try to warm herself up.

Ruby came out with two mugs and was pouring coffee in one of them when Laura spoke up.

"Can I please have some hot cocoa please?"

Ruby could feel the stench making its way up her nose and burning the insides of it.

"Sure thing and you can call me Ruby."

"Hi Ruby, my name is Laura Hollis." She offered her hand to Ruby, who shook it.

A relief had washed over Ruby when she realized that the stench wasn't coming from this sweet girl.

"This broody one over here is Carmilla." Carmilla didn't give any sign that she had heard Laura. It wasn't that she hadn't, but she didn't want to acknowledge the other woman. She could feel that something was...off about her too. Carmilla looked around to find the exits if things got out of hand.

"I'm not surprised you chose hot cocoa, it has a warmth to it that black coffee can't fill." Ruby said and watched for Carmilla to respond, but she didn't. She went back to grab the hot cocoa for Laura.

Granny came out from behind the counter, "The two of you looked like you had a hell of a journey coming from wherever you were. It just so happens that this isn't only a diner. You can have a room, if you want."

Ruby almost dropped the cup of hot cocoa when she heard Granny offer them a room. Couldn't the old woman smell the same thing as her?

"That would be great, thank you! We have been traveling pretty far and it's been getting colder."

Carmilla picked up the menu and was glancing at it.

"Would you two need separate rooms?"

"No, one would be fine." Carmilla said.

"I will get the key ready for you when you've finished your meal. The first ones on us." Granny said.

Ruby dropped off Laura's hot cocoa and followed Granny back into the kitchen.

 **xxx**

"Why did you just offer a room to them like that! Couldn't you smell _it_?" Ruby hissed under her breath.

Granny sighed, "If you have been around as long as I have, pup, you'd know that scent anywhere. Do you remember how difficult it was for the town to accept you?"

"Yes, Granny."

"Good because I don't want to see you, my granddaughter, turning into one of those townspeople who were after you. Without David and Emma's help, you wouldn't be here anymore."

Ruby grumbled.

"You better not be grumbling at me or I can have you working the rest of the week without being able to see Bell."

"Fine Granny, I'll put up with it...for now."

 **xxx**

Laura was happily drinking her hot cocoa and would comment every once and a while how it was the most delicious thing she had ever tasted on the planet.

"Are you saying that it tastes better than me?"

Laura almost choked, "N-No!" Her face turned pink.

"I was just saying that it's really delicious."

"Whatever you say."

Carmilla had to bite the inside of her lip so that she could try to not let whatever that foul smell was get to her. She had only smelled it once in her lifetime, but it was something she would never forget the scent of. It made her stomach churn knowing that a werewolf, if not two, were present in the enclosed space with them. She didn't want to alert Laura, so she remained calm.

As Carmilla wrapped her hands around the hot mug of coffee, she noticed the way that Laura's neck looked so inviting. It was as though she could see the blood pulsing through her veins. It called out to her, but she fought it with every fiber of her being.

When they started their escape, Carmilla made it very clear that she wouldn't drink from Laura. She didn't care if she was starving for blood, she wouldn't, couldn't do it to her. Laura had insisted that it was okay, but Carmilla wouldn't hear of it. She had to pull an "Edward Cullen" by drinking from animals.

Laura had turned away when it came to Carmilla hunting her prey. She mostly dealt with deer and other small critters. She would've hunted in her panther form if it didn't seem out of the ordinary.

It had stated her for the time being, but it still wasn't enough for her. She finally was at her wit's end and had to taste blood, human blood. Carmilla was contemplating if she should take up Laura on her offer. She would never risk feeding on someone in town.

Laura knew about Carmilla's feeding habits, but Carmilla wouldn't go into detail about what she did. She was very grateful for that too. Carmilla did mention that the blood tasted the most delicious when it was done during someone orgasming. Over the centuries, she had tasted many types of blood. If Laura's blood tasted as mouthwatering as she did, then she would have to control herself.


	2. Chapter 2

The two werewolves returned to the front of the diner once more and Ruby had a genuine smile for Laura, but had a fake one plastered on her face for Carmilla. Laura had ordered food, but Carmilla didn't bother. Sure, she could enjoy the food without it tasting like ash, but her craving for blood kept getting heightened.

Laura tried not to wolf down the food since she couldn't remember how long it had been since she had a decent meal. Carmilla had made do with what they could find, even resorted to stealing. Laura had felt a bit guilty about stealing food from people. Carmilla reassured her that the people they stole from could buy more food.

The vampire did have money with them and she kept it securely in her boot. Laura couldn't refuse a free meal and Carmilla made no effort to let it be known that she could easily afford it.

Laura had wiped her mouth with a napkin and Ruby cleared away the plate.

"How did you like it?"

"It totally hit the spot. Carm, are you sure you don't want anything? You can't turn down homemade food."

Carmilla tried to look anywhere but at Laura's neck, so she kept her focus on Laura's voice, her lips, and her beautiful eyes that always kept her grounded. All that Carmilla could respond with was a shake of her head.

As much as she tried to control herself, she felt her fangs extend in her mouth. She immediately closed it and allowed the fangs to pierce her bottom lip. She used her tongue to try to wipe away the blood. It wasn't quick enough because Laura saw it.

"Carm, you're bleeding!"

"It's fine, Creampuff."

"It's not fine! You're bleeding and it could get worse. If you don't take care of it now, then it could get infected later."

Carmilla rolled her eyes.

"I said leave it be!" She had said it a lot harsher than she planned to.

She saw the hurt expression on Laura's face, so she lifted a napkin from the table.

"Can you help me?"

Laura's face lit up again. She took the napkin and carefully dabbed at Carmilla's lip.

Thankfully, Laura hadn't noticed noticed her fangs.

Ruby could smell the blood and turned towards Carmilla, locking eyes with her. She saw a glint of Carmilla's fangs.

Laura was getting closer to Carmilla as she was trying to make sure that she didn't miss a spot of blood. Carmilla could feel panic slowly rising in her chest and she silently begged Laura to back off. Her lavender scent was overpowering the vampire's senses.

Carmilla's fangs were finally at their full length. As Laura leaned in closer to her, Carmilla knew that she had left her neck exposed even more to her. She should've pushed Laura away from her in case she did something she would regret.

Without any warning, Carmilla's eyes turned black, and she had lunged toward Laura.

Laura wasn't prepared for Carmilla to attack her and she saw that _her_ Carmilla was gone. The vampire in front of her was what others had referred to as a monster. She had fell over and tried to hold Carmilla at bay with her arms, but she was too strong for her.

Carmilla's teeth had barely grazed Laura's neck before Ruby had intervened. A growl had escaped Ruby's lips as she pulled Laura out from underneath Carmilla. She wrapped her arms around the girl and passed her to Granny. The old woman had brought Laura to safety inside of the kitchen.

The werewolf was in a defensive stance when Carmilla had launched herself at her. The two supernatural creatures collided together. The impact of their bodies hitting one another could have shaken the diner.

Carmilla was going straight for Ruby's jugular and wanted to rip her throat open. How could this werewolf stop her from having her meal? She would've complimented Ruby on her fighting skills if she hadn't let the beast within her take over.

The vampire's eyes remained black as she did anything possible to take Ruby down. The werewolf was doing what she could to defend herself against Carmilla's attacks. They tumbled to the floor and Carmilla was on top. She had pinned Ruby down, who snarled at her like a rabid animal. Carmilla was so close to tasting the werewolf's crimson nectar when she felt something penetrate her shoulder.

"That's enough! I won't have you harming that poor girl, let alone my granddaughter. If you don't back off, then you'll have more than an arrow in you, I can assure you of that."

Granny held her crossbow in her hands. Carmilla let go of Ruby and tried to pull out the arrow, but it was pointless. Laura had rushed over to Carmilla when she saw that her eyes went back to normal.

Ruby blocked Laura from getting to Carmilla.

"How do you know that she's back to normal? Did you see how she was going to tear you to pieces to get to you?"

Laura tried to push past Ruby, but she continued to block her.

"Please Ruby, she's hurt. She's back to being herself, I swear."

Ruby hesitated for a moment.

"If she tries anything, then another arrow won't be the only thing that she has to worry about."

Carmilla covered her mouth since her fangs still hadn't retracted still.

"D-Don't come near me, Laura. Ruby's right, I might…"

She couldn't finish the sentence. She was already horrified by the fact that she did almost kill Laura.

"No Carmilla! I know that you won't hurt me. Please, let me help you."

Carmilla backed up further away from Laura until her back was pressed against the booth. The pain in her shoulder was painful, but nothing was as painful as the thought of losing Laura, especially because of her.

Carmilla got to her feet as fast as she could and ran out into the night air. Laura tried to follow her, but the vampire easily out ran her. She ran as far as she could and let her feet guide her. She didn't know where she was going, but she thought that the clock tower might be the best choice. Daylight would be coming soon and she had to avoid its dangerous rays.

Laura would've ran farther, but she lost sight of Carmilla. She was so worried about her girlfriend and knew that daylight would be here. She just hoped that she found a safe place away from the sunlight.

Ruby let Laura back into the diner and covered her with her red cloak.

"Are you trying to catch a cold out there?"

"I had to try to find her before the sun…"

Granny nodded and sighed, "This looks like something that Emma and Regina should take care of. We did the best we could."

Laura frowned as she looked at Granny's crossbow, "Will that arrow hurt Carmilla?"

"Don't worry Laura, she'll be okay. It'll hurt like a bitch, but that's about it." Ruby said while guiding Laura up the stairs to a room. She was helping Laura into bed when Laura said, "I have to go out and find her Ruby."

"There's no way that I'm letting you out of my sight. You'll catch a cold out there and I don't think Carmilla would like that."

"I just want her to be safe." Laura whispered.

"We'll have a small search party in the morning to look for her, okay?"

Laura nodded and rested her head on the pillow.

As Ruby was about to leave, Laura held her hand.

"Promise me that you and the others won't hurt her. It was an accident, she's usually not like that. If you get to know her…"

Ruby nodded, "I promise, Laura. You need your rest if you want to help search for her."

Laura settled down in the bed, "Night, Ruby."

"Night, Laura."


	3. Chapter 3

Carmilla kicked the doors that lead into the clock tower and didn't care if it broke off of its hinges. The ray of sunlight came through and she had barely avoided it. How could she look Laura in the face after what she had done? The fear that flashed in Laura's eyes was enough to make her sick to her stomach. She just leaned against a table when she vomited. She used her hand to wipe it away.

The next thing she did was slam her fist into the table, splitting the wood, causing it to fall into a pile. There were splinters, but she didn't care if it got her. She tried to grip the arrow again, but let go as soon as the pain worsened.

The tip thankfully wasn't made of wood and she appreciated that the old hag hadn't shot her in a vital area. She walked over to the farther part of the book shelves that were in front of her. She sat down on the cold floor and leaned her back against the shelf.

At that moment, she didn't care if the damn sun penetrated the windows. She deserved to be burned after coming so close to ending Laura's life. The pain was starting to become dull and although Carmilla didn't want to sleep, she knew she had to keep up her strength.

 **xxx**

Carmilla didn't know how much time had passed, but she heard a gasp and foot steps. Whoever had come in probably noticed the damage that she had caused earlier that morning. She didn't have time to be considerate about destroying things. Her main goal was to get to safety. She knew that Laura would be safe where she was. That was one positive thing that came out of this dreadful situation.

There were more voices coming from the entrance. Carmilla stood up on her feet and was ready for whatever was about to happen. She was too weak to turn into a panther. She didn't have much to protect herself with, but she wasn't going to let anybody take her down, even in her weakened state.

 **xxx**

"What the hell happened here, Belle?" Emma asked as she stepped over the debree. Whatever had caused this sure as hell knew how to take out what was in their way. She noticed there was a mess on the floor and did her best to avoid it.

"I don't know, Emma. I was on my way to the library as usual and saw this mess. I thought it was best to call you."

"Yeah, good thing you did. I have no idea what caused this, but this couldn't have been done by a human. It was like the individual had used their bare hands to take this place apart."

Purple smoke had appeared and Regina stood before the two other women. She wore her regular mayoral outfit which was a white blouse and tight pencil skirt. She was inspecting everything that had been damaged.

"It seems that whoever caused this hasn't left."

The former Evil Queen looked at Emma, "Any thoughts?"

"Well, I gathered that the person isn't human. Even on my best day I can't do this much damage."

"I hope that I don't have to see you damaging anymore parts of Storybrooke like the way you did my tree."

"That was six years ago, can't you let that go?"

"Of course not."

Belle cleared her throat, "If the person that caused the damage is still here, maybe we should wait it out."

"This calls for a stake out!"

Regina raised an eyebrow, and said dryly "You probably shouldn't announce your plan out so loudly."

Emma rolled her eyes, "Come on you two, it's time to wait."


	4. Chapter 4

Emma ordered a bunch of bear claws and coffee. Ruby had delivered them and Laura came with her.

Regina glanced at the new comer, "I assume that you knew what did this." She pointed towards the damage.

Laura swallowed nervous, "Yeah and it's who, not what."

"What?" Emma asked while her mouth was still stuffed with a bear claw that she had almost finished.

Regina glared at Emma, "You should be professional, _Sheriff Swan_."

Emma finished off her bear claw, "Come on _Madam Mayor_ , this is new to me. Fairytale creatures, werewolves, witches, crazies with potions is something I can handle. Hell, I can even handle your mother!"

The blonde pointed towards the damage, "But this is a whole new ball game."

Laura wanted to go in to see Carmilla, but she didn't want to let the others know about her. There was a small scratch on her neck where Carmilla's fangs scraped her.

She held onto Ruby's arm, who bent down to hear her better.

"Ruby, please don't tell about...Carmilla. She might be not so welcomed."

Ruby patted Laura's arm, "I will help you out. When she fled, she looked the way I did after I had killed my lover."

Laura's voice grew softer "I'm so sorry that you went through that."

"It's in the past, Laura. What matters is that we help your girlfriend out. I doubt she wants to keep that arrow stuck in her."

 **xxx**

Carmilla could hear voices and her superior hearing picked up Laura's voice and Ruby's. She was angry at Ruby, but grateful that she had interfered when she did. If not, then Laura wouldn't be there. She could barely see her, but saw that Laura had Ruby's cloak on still.

"Well isn't that just so damn ironic. Ruby looks like the big bad wolf who wants to devour my Laura."

Carmilla saw that Ruby had heard her and gave her a warning look. The vampire scoffed and flipped her the finger. Even if she was hurt ,it didn't mean her personality wavered.

 **xxx**

Regina hadn't missed the exchange between the stranger and Ruby.

"Is there something that you would like to share with the rest of the class, Miss Lucas?"

Sarcasm was dripping from Regina's lips as she said it.

Ruby put a hand on Laura's shoulder, "This is Laura and her girlfriend is in there. She might be the only one that can get her out of there."

"I have no doubt that I can get her out myself."

Laura shook her head,"Please Madam Mayor, let me. She doesn't take well to strangers."

Carmilla rolled her eyes as the group talked about her. Laura made her sound so defenseless. Her back was up against a corner, literally and figuratively.

She had already caused enough trouble and she hadn't even been in Storybrooke for that long. She wanted to make things easier on Laura and Ruby.

 **xxx**

The group turned toward the sound of heavy boots echoing throughout the small room. Carmilla came out with her hands raised above her head, "Don't shoot, I already got shot once, I don't need a replay."

Emma chuckled, "Damn, Granny got you good."

Carmilla scowled at Emma, "I won't let her hit me twice."

Regina looked more amused than anything, "It's nice to see that you finally graced us with your presence. I hope you know how much this will cost to fix."

"You can just magic this away, Regina."

"Yes, but she needs to be taught a lesson."

Carmilla smirked, "The only one I will let teach me a lesson is that gorgeous blonde over there." She was referring to Laura, but Emma thought she was referring to her.

"You're too young for me, kid. Plus, you don't want to piss this one off." Emma said when referring to Regina.

"Don't flatter yourself, I wasn't talking to you. Maybe you should lay off the sweets or it'll go to all the wrong places."

"Hey! I exercise like hell and deserve to enjoy my sweets. I can lay off whenever I want.

"You should tell that to your shirt cause it's looking a little tighter."

Emma brushed he crumbs off herself, "Listen brat, you better shut your mouth if you know what's good for you. I don't care if you are a kid, I won't play nice."

Carmilla scoffed, "Yeah, like I'd ever _play_ with a woman way past her prime."

Emma was getting ready to wipe that smirk right off Carmilla's lips.

"Enough, Emma." Regina said as she rubbed her temples. "I can't believe you're arguing with a _child_."

"I'm not a child."

"You certainly act like one. If you don't want to be perceived as such, then I would stop while you're ahead."

Carmilla wanted to say something else, but her eyes focused on Laura, who ran to her. Carmilla had her arms opened and Laura let her hold her close. The vampire winced as the impact had hit her wound. She had been bleeding some on and off slightly throughout the night.

She should've broken off the tip like she had been shown once upon a time, but didn't bother. If the arrow was enchanted, then it wouldn't matter how hard she tried to pull it out.

Laura turned around in Carmilla's arms to face Emma, Regina, Belle, and Ruby.

"Carmilla will take full responsibility for her actions. She needs to get this arrow out and I don't know how." Laura tried to stay strong, but she felt completely helpless.

"Dr. Whale can help. I'll ask him to make a house call." Regina said as she called him.

"And I'm charging your leather pants ass for this after you get the okay from him." Emma snapped.

Carmilla was ready for a comeback when Laura gave her a look. She hated to admit it, but Laura knew how to shut her up. Right now, she wanted her to shut her up in a different way, mainly involving that tongue of hers.

 **xxx**

They all fit into Emma's cruiser with Laura on Carmilla's lap. Carmilla was saying a silent prayer that the cruiser had tinted windows that didn't allow light to pour into the back seat.

Laura was whispering to Carmilla and saw Ruby make a face.

"You don't smell that appealing to me either."

"Can you not cover yourself up with something?"

"Your perfume makes me want to puke."

"Carm!"

Carmilla rolled her eyes.

"What I meant to say was that you better get a refund on it."

Emma slammed on the breaks and Carmilla held onto Laura so she didn't do a faceplant on the passenger seat.

"One more insult like that and you'll have to walk your sorry ass to see Dr. Whale."

Carmilla held onto Laura and didn't say anything further.

"I feel like I'm surrounded by idiots sometimes." Regina muttered.

Belle had been quiet the entire time until now.

"How were you able to break the doors down and split that table? Ruby has been the only one I have seen with that type of strength. Are you a werewolf, by chance?"

"No."

Belle wanted to ask more questions, but Ruby gave her a look.

 **xxx**

Dr. Whale looked like a kid on Christmas when he saw Carmilla, who Laura covered with Ruby's cloak.

"Oh my, look what the cat dragged in! I can already tell that this will be very exciting. You look like a less tame version of Ruby."

"Just get this damn thing out already."

"Follow me."

The glass doors opened and Carmilla was sitting up in the hospital bed.

"I need room to breathe."

Emma, Regina, and Belle went into the lobby while Ruby and Laura stayed behind.

"Are you next of kin?" He asked Laura.

"No."

"Then it seems that you can't be back here. That goes for you too, Ruby."

Carmilla looked at Laura, pleading silently for her not to leave.

Regina came in as Ruby and Laura were about to leave.

"That seems highly unnecessary in a case like this. What's your name dear?"

"Laura Hollis and that is Carmilla Karnstein."

"Miss Hollis is the one out of all of us that isn't a stranger. I would prefer that they felt comfortable here."

"Yes Madam Mayor." Dr. Whale seemed a bit disappointed. He wasn't going to dissect this new creature before him, but whatever he could learn was dashed.

 **xxx**

It didn't take long for Dr. Whales to take out the arrow, but Laura held her hand the entire time while saying soothing words to her. Carmilla gritted her teeth until he pulled it all out.

"All I have to do is dress the wound."

"Touch me with those hands and you won't have them. Got it?"

Laura held out her hand, "I can do it, Dr. Whales, thank you."

Carmilla didn't hate men, but Dr. Whales didn't exactly give off an angelic vibe.

Before Dr. Whale could protest, the curtain was closed around them. Regina and Ruby went into the lobby to discuss what to do.

Laura sat down in the chair and carefully pulled down Carmilla's tank top while trying to avoid the gaping hole.

"As much as I love you undressing me, Cupcake, I wish it was under better circumstances."

Laura was using alcohol on her wound which caused Carmilla to let out a hiss.

"Fuck Laura, that hurt!"

"Sorry." Laura said as she dressed the wound by taping gauze over the hole. She then wrapped a bandage that went around Carmilla's shoulder and under her armpit.

Carmilla felt worse than before after seeing those scrapes on Laura's neck. If she had been a little closer to Laura when she attacked her the previous night, it wouldn't just be a scratch.

As much as the vampire wanted to avoid looking at her girlfriend's neck, she didn't.

"Laura, I…"

Laura put a finger to her lips to shush her.

"I know it wasn't _you_ who attacked me last night. Don't let this guilt swallow you up. Stay here, with me."

Laura leaned in close to Carmilla again. The brunette was hesitant.

"What if I do it again?"

"You won't. I believe in you, Carmilla, even when you don't believe in yourself."

Carmilla felt something wet on her face and realized that a single tear had escaped.

Laura carefully kissed the tear away and felt Carmilla relax. She kissed her on the lips and hoped that Carmilla could feel how much she loved her in that one kiss.


	5. Chapter 5

Laura had Carmilla scoot over on the hospital bed so that she could lay next to her. Carmilla covered them with Ruby's cloak. She was glad that it smelled like Laura and made sure that Laura was the one mainly covered.

Carmilla got into a comfier position so that Laura could be wrapped in her arms while not hurting her. The two of them peacefully fell asleep.

 **xxx**

Regina was pacing in the lobby trying to figure out what to do with the two young women.

"I think that under these circumstances, it would be safer for them to stay with Emma and I. That way, I can keep an eye on them and learn more about them."

"I can do some research once you gather new information. Carmilla looks familiar. I'll let you know what I find out." Belle said as she left to go to the library.

"Woah Regina, I don't want that leather wearing punk anywhere near us!"

"Emma, I won't allow them to be on their own. If Carmilla or Laura are supernatural beings or from The Enchanted Forest, then I would like to know. They have nowhere else to go. I know that Ruby and Granny are busy enough as it is."

Ruby looked at the sleeping forms of Carmilla and Laura. "Although I just met them last night, I feel like I'm slowly forming a bond with them. Laura is much easier to bond with since Carmilla is so stand-offish. I think Regina might be able to handle Carmilla better than Emma."

"Ruby, why would you say that! I could teach her a thing or two by kicking her ass."

Regina chuckled, "She might have you beat by the way she took down the library doors and table."

"I fought a dragon."

"It's settled then. I'll wait for Dr. Whale to release them into our custody."

 **xxx**

Dr. Whale had been pouring over his books in his office. They were mainly anatomy books, but he had other ones like fairy tales and urban legends.

He had the phone book laid out in front of him. It was obvious that this Carmilla wasn't human. He knew the moment he looked into her eyes.

His desire for dissecting her had grown even stronger. The best approach would be to get help from an old friend and do whatever he could to get Carmilla under his thumb.

He was muttering to himself as his finger went down the page in the phonebook. He picked up his phone to dial the number.

"Hello."

"What do you want, Dr. Whale?"

"I want to ask a favor from you."

"I doubt it'll be interesting."

"I need your skills."

"I don't do that kind of thing anymore."

"There is a monster in Storybrooke, but of what supernatural entity is unknown as of now."

"A monster? Are you sure it's not one of your own that you created from your twisted experiments?"

"I'm serious!"

"I'll meet you in a couple of days."

"Don't forget your crossbow, Van Helsing."

 **xxx**

Regina let the two younger women rest since it was no surprise how exhausted they were. Ruby had to go back to work, so she and Emma were still left in the lobby. Emma was stretching out on the hospital chair and looked cranky.

"I know that face, Emma."

"Yes, I hope you would since it's the only face I have!"

"Well yes and I love your face, Emma."

"I would hope so cause you're stuck with it and the rest of me. Who else is doing to be _your_ idiot?"

Regina sat down next to her and put a hand on her favorite blonde's thigh.

"I told you that you shouldn't have eaten all those bear claws. It shouldn't be a part of your diet."

"Can you be a part of my "diet"?"

Regina smirked and kissed her cheek, "Later, Dear."

Dr. Whale walked in with a chart and a pen. The two women stood up and Emma was holding onto Regina's hand. What was causing this uneasy feeling in Emma's gut?

"Carmilla is in perfect health and is doing much better since the arrow was removed. This is all done through a visual examination since I wasn't able to get near her. That Laura really cares about her…"

"Get to the point, Dr. Whales."

"They can be released."

"Good."

 **xxx**

Carmilla and Laura were sitting in the back seat of Regina's car. Carmilla was looking off into the distance while Laura touched her hand, "Hey, don't go off somewhere that I can't follow."

She turned around to face the love of her life, "I promised to never leave you behind, Laura."

"So where were you?"

"It's not important, Laura. We have other concerns right now."

She could feel the heat coming from the other blonde in the front seat.

"Emma, they're not going anywhere. I doubt either of them are foolish enough to jump out of a movie car."

"I would be."

"Of course you would."

 **xxx**

Laura had her mouth hanging open when she stood inside of the mansion.

"Carm, have you seen a beautiful place like this? I know Syria was beautiful, but look at the stairs! The winding banister is so cool."

"Don't get used to this place, Laura, we won't be staying long."

"Carm…"

"Look Laura, you can sometimes be very off-guard about things. Aren't you worried that they'd find out about me? Can you imagine how many towns people will have stakes in their hands when they find out? I don't want a repeat of Christmas."

"Everything will be fine, you'll see. You know what worrying does to you."

 **xxx**

Regina was in the kitchen making food for their guests and Emma's stomach growled.

"I told you that bear claws weren't enough to satisfy your appetite."

Emma was leaning against the counter with her arms folded watching her girlfriend, "Something is seriously up with Carmilla. Are those leather pants glued to her?"

"Are your jeans glued to you?"

"They are a tight fit, Regina. How else do you think my ass looks so good? Maybe it's secretly painted on."

"Emma, this is serious."

"I know, Regina. We can't have them wandering the place."

"They're perfectly fine, Emma. I have appropriate spells cast where they are needed, so nothing will be discovered."

"I don't care if they found our sex toys, Regina!"

Regina pursed her lips, "You know what I'm talking about, Emma."

Emma was about to say something more when their two guests' footsteps were heard coming in their direction.

"I can smell something, Carm and it's delicious."

"Really Laura? You're thinking about food?"

"We haven't had anything to eat since last night!"

" _I_ haven't had anything to eat since…"

"Please Carm, don't ruin the moment. I know we can find you something. There are squirrels, deer, and other fun little creatures to nom on."

"Haha, very funny. I'm being serious here."

"Please just relax, okay? We'll eat and then go from there."

"I'm going along with this because of you."

"I know."

 **xxx**

Laura reached for Carmilla's hand and the expression on the vampire's face softened a bit.

"So what's cooking?" Laura asked curiously.

Emma was about to take some garlic bread when Regina hit her hand with a wooden spoon.

"Ow Regina, what gives?"

"You know that you can't eat when I'm cooking."

"How come you get to eat when you cook?"

"I have to make sure that the food tastes good. You don't want to serve your guests something disgusting, would you? It's impolite."

"Well, I need to sample them too. You might have goofed something up."

Regina pointed the wooden spoon at her, "I don't 'goof' anything up when it comes to my cooking. A Queen isn't able to make mistakes. Will you go set the table?"

"Why would I want to do that when I can try some more 'sampling'?"

"Miss Swan, if you don't set that table then you will be spending tonight on the couch!"

Emma was grabbing plates and silverware quickly and she almost dropped a plate when Carmilla caught it.

"Careful there, wouldn't want an accident. I don't think your 'Queen' would like that."

Everyone seemed to be attracted to Carmilla in some way, whether it was platonic or not. Her charm wasn't having any effect on Emma.

"This is her calm. You should see her when my parents show up."

Laura intervened, "How about we set the table? I want to see more of the house if that's okay."

"Sure thing! There's nothing like working up an appetite."

Regina smirked at Emma, "You're always hungry."

"Those Snicker commercials are a lie."

Laura chuckled, "Doesn't it go, 'You're not you when you're hungry'?"

"If I'm hungry all the time, then who am I?"

"A Snickers?"

"I never thought of that, Laura. Would I eat myself then?"

"I don't know who would say no to a Snicker's bar."

Emma looked at Regina while Laura looked at Carm.

Both of them said, "Yeah, I can think of someone."

Regina cleared her throat, "That table won't set itself up, Miss Swan."

"It would if you used a little M-A-G…"

The look Regina gave Emma had her leaving the kitchen so fast that she was just a blur of blonde, red, and blue. Laura followed Emma out in the dining room.

When Regina was satisfied after hearing the sounds of plates being set, she said, "Thank you for helping my klutz of a girlfriend."

"No problem, mine is a bit of a klutz too."

The former Evil Queen had been preparing her famous lasagna for lunch along with garlic bread, and salad. She was waiting for an apple pie to bake in the oven too.

Ever since the curse broke, all she could think about was cooking for herself. In the past, she had others cook for her. This was one of the ways that she took control of her life.

"What brings you to our small town?"

"The sights."

"There isn't much going on in the evening. I would know, I'm the mayor."

"Did you also know that the waitress at your diner is a werewolf?"

Regina stopped stirring the pot for a moment, "I'm surprised you spotted that right away. It isn't normal for a _human_ to spot that."

"You can say that I'm special."

Regina faced her, "You are special to a particular someone."

Carmilla smirked, "Yeah, I can't go anywhere without my Creampuff."

Regina felt like she and this Carmilla might have things in common. One part that didn't make as much sense was how the younger woman could heal so easily after the ordeal from this morning. She came to the conclusion that Carmilla wasn't human.

The two of them just watched their girlfriends start to talk as they set the table.

 **xxx**

Emma and Laura had finished the table.

"Wow, your girlfriend has really good taste."

"She better, she chose me." Emma said while grinning.

The four of them sat down at the dinner table with Regina at the head of the table.

Laura was quiet because she was eating the delicious food.

Carmilla ate out of politeness.

Even she had to admit that the lasagna was as mouthwatering as Laura made it look.

"How did you two meet, Emma?"

"Our son."

Regina nodded, "I adopted her son and years later, he went looking for her."

"Awkward..."

"Yeah, you're telling me. He comes on my apartment and says, 'Hi, I'm Henry, I'm your son.' and I was supposed to just go with it."

"And then?"

"And then I bring his sorry butt back home to her. He stole this one's credit card and got a bus to a completely different state! She likes to call me 'irresponsible' with our son."

"It's because you're irresponsible."

"I brought him back to you though! Irresponsible is when I don't return him."

Regina frowned, "I really hope you wouldn't have really kidnapped him."

"It was like _he_ kidnapped me."

Laura asked, "Can you technically 'kidnap' an adult?"

Carmilla was amusing herself by seeing how Regina, Emma, and Laura conversed at the table. Humans could be so confusing sometimes. She could seduce others easily, yet this natural form of interaction was still a bit foreign to her, vampire or not.

"As Emma was saying, Henry was returned to me where he proceeded to call me The Evil Queen."

Emma put a hand on top of Regina's, "He didn't mean it, you know. Ten year olds can be jerks, even if they are your kid."

"I was a pretty weird ten year old myself." Laura said while trying to break the tension.

"By 'weird', do you mean you believed that everyone in town was part of a fairy tale and that your birth mom was going to rescue everyone?"

"Well uh...no."

"As lovely as this 'getting to me know' thing is…" Carmilla said as she stood up and pushed her chair in, "I think I have had my fill."

Laura was about to stand up and leave when Carm kissed her cheek, "I'll just be outside, Cupcake."

Carmilla made her way to the front door and leaned against one of the white pillars. She saw the cars pass by on the street and it was as though they did everything to avoid where she was. It was like a curse had fallen onto the house and she laughed to herself at the thought. The "curse" that had fallen on the house was brought about by her presence.

 **xxx**

"I'm sorry about Carm. Sometimes she can't stay at the same place for too long."

"There's no need to apologize for her, Laura."

The plates were cleared away and the three of them went into the living room.

 **xxx**

Laura was trying not to fidget in her seat. She felt so alone without Carmilla being in the same room. She could survive without her by her side, but she didn't want that. She gave out a sigh of relief when she saw Carmilla come into the living room. The vampire took her seat next to her beloved.

"We need to discuss something very important."

"Great, I _love_ these 'talks' we're having."

Laura nudged Carmilla.

Regina waited until Carmilla stopped talking.

"The two of you are going to be staying here with the two of us."

"We should have a say in this." Laura said while trying to stay calm.

"I normally would agree with you, but strangers don't always do well in Storybrooke."

"Is that a threat?"

"Of course not. When Emma came to Storybrooke, I wasn't happy that she was being so rebellious. As the Mayor of Storybrooke, I expected some form of order. She had disrupt the peace. She made everything a lot more complicated than it had to be."

Carmilla snickered, "So you're worried that we would 'disrupt' your peaceful little town? This place is a snore fest. I wish we never came here."

"There's nothing you can change about that now."

Laura could tell that Carmilla was acting this way out of fear. She hated the idea of being trapped and not having any control of the situation.

"Carm, maybe they're right. What's a safer place than being in the Mayor's home?"

Carmilla kept looking at the front door as Laura was speaking. She could walk out the door with Laura and not come back. She hated that she _was_ trapped here because she couldn't cross the town line. Where would she go? She couldn't return to Granny's diner since she clearly wasn't welcomed there.

"I am the Sheriff here, so that's a bonus."

"We will make your stay as pleasant as we can."

"I feel so reassured…"

"Look Carmilla or whatever you name is, you can either stay here or go find another place to stay. The reason I'm going along with this idea is because I trust my girlfriend and she knows what she's talking about. We know the people in this town and you don't. So what's it going to be, kid?"

Carmilla leaned back into the loveseat and folded her arms over her chest, "Fine, but this isn't permanent, got it?"

Laura tried to cut the tension in the room, "So how about that weather we're having today?"


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I know that Carmilla probably wouldn't say or do what she did in the living room, but I had fun with it!**

Evening arrived and the two older women had gone to bed. Carmilla and Laura were able to stayin Henry's old room.

Carmilla had trouble sleeping, so she just watched Laura sleep in her arms. Laura had such a peaceful look on her face as she was sleeping.

The vampire was focusing on the way that Laura's chest was rising and falling. The blood was once again calling to her. It could've been as though it was singing to her, a beautiful, yet haunting melody.

Her thirst for blood was taking over and her eyes were turning black once more. She was leaning down towards Laura's neck with her fangs out when the door opened. Her eyes shifted from Laura to the person at the door.

Her eyes had returned to normal again and her fangs ascended back into her mouth. She wanted to run, but didn't want to leave Laura again. She made a promise that she would never leave her again. She was going to keep it.

 **xxx**

"I now have my answer to why it was easy for you to discover that Ruby was a werewolf." Regina said.

The former Evil Queen had seen all types of species whether supernatural or magical in The Enchanted Forest. If Emma was the one to find Carmilla in this moment, she would shoot first and ask questions later.

Carmilla wasn't one to beg for anything, so she stayed completely still. Laura remained asleep since she slept like a rock. She could sleep through anything whether it was a thunderstorm or even the chaos on campus.

"I would tell you to back away from Laura, but I can tell that you're back to your normal state."

"Listen, I need blood. I won't take any from the townspeople."

"I believe that I have a solution to your...predicament."

"Just because you are willing to help me doesn't mean we'll start having a sleepover and braiding each other's hair."

Regina rolled her eyes, "I can assure you that I wouldn't do something so immature as that."

"Good."

Carmilla moved at a speed that was too fast for the untrained eye. One minute, she was on the bed with Laura and the next, she was in front of Regina.

"Ladies first."

 **xxx**

Regina snapped her fingers and purple smoke surrounded the both of them. They had appeared inside her vault. Carmilla had to grab a shelf to steady herself. That experience was completely new for her.

"Magic? Lovely. Warn me next time you decide to poof me. Next time, I'll make sure to ruin whatever the closest object is to me."

Regina pulled out an old leather book and blew on it so that dust flew in the air. She was flipping through the pages to find the necessary potion.

"Are you always this sarcastic?"

"Are you always such a bitch?"

Regina slammed the book on the table, "How can I be a bitch when I'm trying to help you?"

"You have to be the reason why Laura and I are trapped in this horrible place!"

"What are you even talking about?"

"The town line, I can't cross it."

"There's a reason for that."

"Enlighten me."

"Years ago, there was a curse on this town. I had cast a spell that caused everyone to lose their memories except for myself and one other person."

"That's so reassuring."

Regina ignored her, "The curse made it so that none of us could leave the town. If a newcomer crossed the line, then they would also have to remain here."

"What happened after the curse was broken?"

"Anybody would be able to leave town. I was surprised that you could find it."

"Let me guess, magic again?"

"Yes."

"If the curse is broken, then why can't I cross it?"

"Perhaps it's because you're a vampire."

Carmilla sighed, "I don't know if Laura can cross the line. She was in my arms when I tried to."

"Have you tried to have Laura cross it?"

"No! There's no way that I would risk Laura leaving. She could end up in agony just like I was or she might not able to find the place again."

"I could cast a spell that would make it so she could find the place."

Carmilla gritted her teeth, "No magic, end of discussion."

"I find it so interesting that you're willing to let me help you with blood, which requires magic, yet you won't allow me to use it otherwise."

"Magic is dangerous."

The truth was that Carmilla was more than terrified of magic. Her mother had access to spells and wouldn't be surprised if she had used any on Carmilla. Her cruelty seemed to have no limits when it came to what

"Yes, magic always comes with a price."

"I'm not willing to risk Laura's life. I don't care what happens to me."

"You seemed willing enough to put her in danger."

"That wasn't my fault!"

"Who else is there to blame? If I hadn't stopped you, then what would you have done? Would you have done what Ruby did to her lover and kill her?"

"I...I wouldn't…"

"You don't know that. I saw your eyes. That look was primal."

"You don't know me at all! That's not _me_."

"Then who was it?"

"A monster."

Carmilla had thought of those words, but it was the first time that she said it out loud.

"In my past, I was known as The Evil Queen. Yes, the one from Snow White. I did terrible thing that I regret. In that sense, I was a monster too."

"So why did she choose you?"

"She saw passed who I was and accepted me as Regina. She never knew me as the Evil Queen, but her parents told her stories. Even so, she still _wanted_ me. Does Laura accept you as you?"

"Yes, she does. She even offered herself to me…"

"I assume that you didn't let her."

"I couldn't do that."

Regina went to the shelves and picked up the ingredients that she needed. A few magic words were said as she poured everything in a big glass flask.

The liquid turned from being a murky grey to crimson.

Carmilla wrinkled her nose, "I can't believe I am about to drink synthetic blood."

"It's either this or Laura."

Regina handed it to her and Carmilla took a deep breath before drinking it.

"Bottoms up."

She felt the liquid slide down her throat. It wasn't the same as real blood, but it was pretty damn close.

"Did it receive your seal of approval?"

"It's not the same, but it'll have to do for now."

Carmilla wiped the synthetic blood from her mouth and it left a stain on her lips as well as her skin.

"I will make more for you tomorrow. In the meantime, I recommend getting much needed sleep."

"Whatever you say, Madam Mayor."

 **xxx**

Carmilla was poofed back into the room where she left Laura asleep. She crawled back into bed, got under the covers, and held her close. Laura moved closer to her. The moonlight illuminated Carmilla and Laura looked up at her sleepily.

"What's on your mouth and arm?"

"The Mayor made me synthetic blood. It's not the same as real blood, but it's enough."

"Good, now go to sleep."

"Don't you mean that _you_ should go to sleep?"

"Shut up, you know what I mean." Laura grumbled as she was now nose to nose with her girlfriend.

"Cupcake?"

"Yeah?"

"Why do you want to be with me?"

"What do you mean 'why'? I love you, Carmilla Karnstein. Always and forever."

"But why? I'm a monst…"

Laura cut her off with a kiss, "I don't ever want to hear you say that word ever again! You aren't one. You're the love of my life and I need you in it. You might be broody at times and tease me with your sexy leather pants, but I love all of you, flaws and all."

"Even when you're old and gray? Will you still love me then?"

"Duh, Carm. I will love you until the end of time or until my time's up. What's going on with you tonight?"

"Nothing, Laura. Let's get some sleep."

Carmilla kissed her forehead and they both fell asleep in each others arms.

 **xxx**

Morning had come and Carmilla stretched out like a cat. She made a purring sound and it woke Laura up.

"Good morning, Creampuff."

Laura smiled and looked at her, "Do you need help cleaning up?"

Carmilla smirked, "It feels like it's been ages since you used your tongue on me."

"Not that kind of cleaning, Carm! We can't do it here."

"Why not? They won't hear us. I wasn't told of any rule about it."

Laura wanted to taste Carmilla so she kissed her softly. The brunette held Laura closer to her body so they fit perfectly together.

Laura was gripping onto Carmilla's hair as their kissing became more feverish. Carmilla couldn't get enough of her Laura and the way she tasted.

Her hands were under Laura's pajama top that Emma let her borrow. For Carmilla, this human was her addiction. She was everything she wanted and needed.

Carm went in for another kiss when she heard Laura say, "Ow."

"Fangs?"

"Yep."

"Turn off?"

"Nope."

Carmilla was trying to be more careful this time as she kissed Laura. She used her hands to slowly touch Laura's body. She was playing her like a musician plays a violin.

It was about to go farther when the door was opened.

"Hey, no sex in the house!"

Carmilla removed her hands from under Laura's shirt and scowled at the intruder.

Laura tried to hide under the covers and her face was beat red.

"You didn't have to come barging in, blondie."

"Regina sent me up here to get you two to come down for breakfast."

"Laura is the only breakfast I need."

"You can't do it in my pajamas! I wear those to bed."

"You aren't wearing them now. What's the problem?"

"It's my kid's bed!"

"I don't see him anywhere."

Emma stood her ground, "You're going downstairs to eat right now."

"Or else what?"

"You'll just have to find out."

Carmilla got out of the bed and stood right in front of Emma.

"Bring it on, Princess. I have taken down people twice my size."

"Yeah, well I took down a fucking dragon!"

"I ate people like you for breakfast."

"I used a chainsaw to cut down my girlfriend's favorite tree."

"Seriously?"

Emma shrugged. "It made perfect sense to do it at the time."

"If you two are done comparing your egos to one another, we can have breakfast."

Laura tried to hide even farther under the covers. She wasn't sure if it was because Emma caught them or that Carmilla was trying to one up Emma.

"This isn't over, leather pants."

"I would watch your back, Goldilocks."

 **xxx**

All four of them were downstairs at the dining room table eating breakfast. Emma loaned clothing to Carmilla while Regina let Laura wear some of hers.

Carmilla has a red flannel shirt on with a white tank top underneath. She still wore her leather pants, but had converses on.

Laura was more put together. She had a cream colored sweater on with jeans and comfortable tennis shoes.

"I never knew you owned jeans, Regina!

"I'm prepared for any occasion, Dear."

"Even naked ones?"

Carmilla almost started choking and Laura had to pat her back.

"I can't believe you're flirting without any shame when I can't even sleep with my girlfriend."

"There's a complete difference!"

"Oh yeah? How so?"

"Because this is our house and what we say goes."

"You can't play the 'I own the house' card. If you can flirt with Regina, then I can flirt with Laura."

"Over my dead body."

"I'd like to see that."

"Are you two done? I would like to move this to the living room."

"That sounds like the perfect place for me and Laura."

Carmilla held onto Laura's hand and ran off to the living room.

Emma jumped out of her seat and was chasing them, "Don't you dare start taking off your shirt!"

Regina rolled her eye and used her magic to put away the dishes.

"I can't believe that I'm dealing with children."

 **xxx**

Regina walked into a shocking sight in the living room.

Laura was sitting on the loveseat while Emma was trying to get Carmilla to put the white tank top back on.

"Cover yourself up, I don't want to see your boobs!"

"I bet you're jealous because they're bigger than yours!"

Regina sat down next to Laura and watched the scene unfold.

"Pfft, you wish you had these bad boys."

"I bet you drive that cruiser to compensate for your lack of boob department."

"What the hell did you say?!"

By the end of the "fight", Emma and Carmilla were both sitting down on the floor in their bras.

Carmilla held Emma's hands against her bra.

"See? Mine are bigger."

Emma rolled her eyes and held Carmilla's hands to her bra.

"Liar."

Regina sighed, "I'm living with an idiot."

Laura laughed, "I have never seen Carmilla like this, it's so out of character for her."

Emma and Carmilla both redressed. They each sat next to their own girlfriend.

"Next time, knock."

"I don't need to knock in my own house!"

"You twatblocked me!"

"Maybe you twatblocked yourself."

The two continued to bicker in between Regina and Laura.

"Do you two need to get a room or something?" Laura asked.

Both looked at Laura and said, "No!"


	7. Chapter 7

After Emma and Carmilla had cooled off, Emma and Regina went to work.

Laura and Carmilla were finally left alone. They retreated back into the room and Carmilla had a laptop on the bed.

"Where did you get that?"

"From Emma's bag."

"Carm, you can't just steal it!"

"I'm borrowing, not stealing."

"What are we going to watch?"

"No idea, you pick."

Laura was scrolling through Netflix when she found an interesting show.

"The outcast descendant of lawman Wyatt Earp teams up with an immortal Doc Holliday to rid the world of demonic revenants from the Wild West."

"Ooo Carm, look at her!"

"I see her, Laura."

"Can we watch it?"

"Sure thing, Creampuff."

Laura clicked the first episode and got to a scene where Wynonna was seducing a boy named Champ to get information out of him. His girlfriend came in with a small gun that she fired off at Wynonna.

"Oh! Except his girlfriend, you skank! Why don't you slip into something more comfy, huh? Like a coma! Worst birthday ever!"

"Wynonna?"

"Hey, sis."

"You grew out your...hair."

The scene continued to where the sisters were talking outside.

Laura paused the show.

"Why did you do that for?"

"Look at the screen, Carmilla."

Carmilla stared at the screen and she felt like she had just been slapped in the face.

"Is that Elle? T-That can't be right."

"Didn't you say that your mother killed her?"

"Yes, at least that's what she told me…"

"Do you think it's possible that it's her?"

"No, it has to be a doppelganger or something."

"But it looks exactly like her."

Carmilla reached her hand out to touch the screen.

"If it is her, then how is it possible?"

"You told me that you can walk in the daylight."

"Yes, but to shoot a show, it takes many hours. I don't know how she could avoid getting hurt by being exposed to the sun for so long. It's not her, Laura."

"But.."

"Please, just drop it."

Carmilla closed the laptop and tried not to shake.

"Hey…you're shaking."

"I'll be okay."

Carmilla gave her a half smile and Laura held her in her arms. The vampire tried to be soothed by the hug from her favorite human, but it didn't work. She made a sound and Laura frowned.

Carmilla was shaking more as she felt sobs wracking her body. Laura held her as she did this.

"I'm here for you, Carm."

Laura kept whispering things to her, but she wasn't present. Instead, she was reliving moments that she shared with Elle. She tore herself away from Laura's embrace. Laura put the laptop on the side table.

"If you need to talk…"

"Please Laura, not now."

"Do you want me to go?"

"No, stay."

Carmilla gently held onto her girlfriend. It was as though she held onto her for dear life.

Laura made sure that the two of them were comfortable in the bed. She wiped away Carmilla's tears and kissed her eyelids.

Carmilla wanted to be comforted, but how could Laura?

Carmilla was resting her head on Laura's chest as she fell asleep. Laura was thankful that she had fallen asleep because she looked like a beautiful angel that fell from the heavens. She stroked her hair and wished that Carm only had happy dreams.

 **xxx**

Carmilla tried to keep herself composed as she had nightmares about Elle. She couldn't let Laura know about this. She felt a desire to protect her, somehow.

 **xxx**

Emma was chowing down on a delicious burger and fries while the juices from the burgers were dripping down her chin.

She looked down and began to panic as she realized that the juice was spilling up her paperwork.

She scrambled to try to clean it up by pressing napkins to it and wiping the crumbs away.

"Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit!"

"Language, Miss Swan!"

"Ahhh!"

Emma was spooked and the papers went flying in the air while her burger was dropped on the floor. The fries flew everywhere as well and they landed all over Regina's shoes.

She bent down to try to salvage what she could of her food. She pretended to cry as she gathered everything together.

"Oh you poor baby, Mama can't save you. You were mouthwatering while you lasted! All I can think about now is your succulent juices in my mouth. You even rival Regina's…"

"Miss Swan!"

"Don't 'Miss Swan' me! You scared the shit out of me and I lost my lunch."

Regina rolled her eyes, "You can get another one."

"There will not be another burger like the one you killed!"

"It's already dead…"

Emma threw the burger away and went to retrieve her fries. She was picking them up and throwing them away.

"I love you at my feet." Regina purred.

"Yeah well, don't get used to it! Ruining my lunch…"

Regina scooped up the papers and raised an eyebrow, "What happened?"

Emma stood up and dusted off her jeans, "Well uh...you see…"

Regina sniffed the paper and made a face, "Really, Emma?"

"It was an accident!"

"I told you not to eat near your paperwork!"

"I was hungry!"

"It was more like you were making love to your lunch."

"I plead the fifth to moaning while eating it."

Regina pretended to be jealous, "Well, it seems like I have competition."

She tossed Emma's paperwork in the trash, "This has to be redone."

"Why does it matter? It's just a few stains!"

"It's soaked."

Emma moved closer to Regina and pressed herself against her girlfriend's body.

"Can I make you soaked?"

"Not here, Sheriff Swan."

Emma grumbled, "Twatblocked by my own girlfriend."

 **xxx**

Emma had filled out the paperwork again and had poofed to Regina's office.

Regina looked up and was startled, "Don't do that! I could have been in a compromised situation."

"Pfft, I doubt that. The times that you're in a 'compromised situation' is when I'm here."

She held her hand out and Emma put the paperwork in her hand.

"It's nice to know how clean the paper is."

"You owe me a burger and fries with a milkshake."

"We never agreed on a milkshake."

"Take it or leave it!"

"Fine, let me order it right now."

"Oh shit, Regina, we forgot to feed the girls!"

"They're fully capable of finding food."

"Yeah, but I know how you hate people rummaging through your fridge and leaving a mess."

"By 'people', do you mean you?"

"No idea what you're talking."

"Mhm, of course you don't."

Emma was fidgeting a little,"You know, I never thought I would take a liking to Carmilla. The brat's growing on me though."

"That 'brat' is an adult."

"She doesn't act like one!"

"Yes, but neither do you."

"I do so act like one."

"You had a competition about who had larger breasts."

"I totally won though."

 **xxx**

Belle had been in the library and was surprised to see Laura and Carmilla standing outside.

"Hello, please come in."

Laura felt at home around books and Carmilla looked a little uneasy. The last time she was here, she ruined the doors and table. She could tell that the doors and table had yet to be repaired or replaced.

"I'm Laura and this is Carmilla. Carm's really sorry about ruining part of your library."

"Hello, I'm Belle. It's understandable when you're in a panicked situation. No need to worry, nobody was hurt in the process."

"Besides my arrow to the shoulder?"

Belle smiled sheepishly, "Yes, besides that."

Laura held Carmilla's hand, "We're actually looking for a special book."

"You're in luck since our library is very special. What particular one are you looking for?"

"Anything on the Karnstein family."

"If you will follow me, I'm sure we can find it."

Belle lead them down one of the book stacks. Her fingers were touching each spine while reading the titles to herself.

It took a few minutes, but she pulled a very large leather bound book from the shelf and tried to dust it off. It had a golden lock that was on the side that would open if someone pressed the top of it.

"Jeez, I thought my textbooks were heavy." Laura said with wide eyes.

"We have a long history, Laura."

"I'll leave you two to it. If you want to borrow it, then let me know."

"We would like to borrow it, please."

Belle nodded, "Alright, good luck on whatever you're searching for."

 **xxx**

Ruby was cleaning a table and grumbling to herself. She was supposed to have today off to spend with her girlfriend, Belle, but Granny wanted her for an extra day.

"Granny, you promised me I could have today off!"

"You're going to work half a day, Pup, and it's almost over."

Ruby glanced at the clock and noticed she had fifteen more minutes.

Belle had arrived at the diner after locking up the library. She sat at the first booth and smiled at her girlfriend.

"Sorry Babe, I got fifteen more minutes until freedom."

"It's okay, I have this book to keep me company."

She was reading Henry's _Once Upon A Time_ book and loving the illustrations. Many different expressions crossed her face depending on where she was.

Fifteen minutes dragged on for Ruby. For Belle, it went by too fast. She closed the large book when her girlfriend sat down.

"Let's go to the Rabbit Hole. What do you say?"

"Okay, but don't drink so much this time."

"I can't promise anything." Ruby said as she winked.

 **xxx**

Dr. Whale was waiting at the hospital for Van Helsing to arrive.

He spotted the man right away. He towered over Dr Whale and it surprised him that he was much younger than in the stories people told about him. He had his trademark hat and long hair with a trench coat. He looked sort of like a cowboy. He carried a shiny briefcase that Dr. Whale assumed had all his weapons.

"Hello there and welcome to Storybrooke."

"Let's get straight to business."

Dr. Whale lead them to his office. He sat down while Van Helsing sat across from him.

"I assume that this creature you want to hunt is walking around right now?"

"Yes. There are a few more supernatural creatures in town. Two of them will be nearly impossible to get to. The new one is more than protected because the mayor and sheriff have taken her under their wing."

"I have hunted those damn monsters for as long as I can remember. One of those loathsome beasts gave me this scar."

Van Helsing pointed to his scar that started at one side of his forehead and curved until it got to the side of his mouth. It was very deep and it looked so grotesque. The man might've been handsome at some point, but that was years ago.

"Don't worry Doc, they won't be able to plague this town any longer. If you'll excuse me, I have to catch me some monsters."


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: There's a brief reference to Carmilla almost being sexually assaulted as well as some physical/emotional abuse that Carmilla goes through in her past.**

 **It gets a bit graphic when it comes to the death of the man.**

 **Troglodyte (Noun) - impolite an insulting word for someone who is stupid or does not know how to behave correctly in social situations.**

Dr. Whale was surprised that Van Helsing was able to come into the town of Storybrooke. He doubted that the man knew about the Magic Bean which allowed someone to travel to different realms.

"How exactly did you make it to Storybrooke?"

"That is of no concern of yours. I am here and that's all that you need to concern your miniscule brain."

"Throwing insults now? I took you out of retirement!"

"Yes, a fine one at that! You better pay me handsomely well for this assignment or you'll regret it."

Dr. Whale looked nervous, but tried to cover it up.

"Just get the job done."

 **xxx**

On the other side of town, Laura was sitting at the desk in the bedroom pouring over the book that had such vast information about the Karnstein family. The "family" tree was so large that it took almost five whole pages to cover it.

"Hey Carm, I found you on here!"

Laura pointed to Carmilla's name.

The vampire leaned over to see what her human was pointing at.

"That's very fascinating. Let me know if you find something useful."

She returned to the bed to read a philosophy book on Nietzsche. She had borrowed a few of them from Belle. Perhaps, if they ever returned to Silas University, she could pursue a PhD in Philosophy. She had way more than enough credits and wouldn't be surprised if she could skip a majority of the classes.

"Carm, I never knew one of your ancestors poisoned their parents."

"No surprise there, Buttercup. My family was cruel to one another."

"I feel like I'm reading the craziest Shakespeare play ever."

Carmilla shrugged, "Back in those days, you had to be competitive. You let your guard down for a second and your throat could be slit as you sleep."

"Were they all vampires?"

"My mother and I were the only ones."

"It says that you were about to marry someone, but after he found out your secret, you slaughtered his whole family."

Carmilla was silent after Laura read it.

"I'm not that person anymore, Laura. It was a long time ago."

"What happened?"

"I was to be wed to a wealthy family. He appeared to be a man that always got what he wanted. He had started to court me when I realized that I had no desire to be with him."

She put her book down and looked at Laura.

"One evening, we were strolling in the garden behind his home. I had become bored with him by then. As a vampire, it was easy to seduce whoever I wanted. Some time had passed before we sat down under a giant tree. It was nearly impossible to see anything in the darkness."

Carmilla gripped tightly onto the covers. She hadn't spoken about this to anyone before. It was something she kept buried deep inside.

"He tried to kiss me and I tried to push him away. We struggled for a bit before he was on top of me and tore my dress open. I had a choice to either let him do as he wished or reveal my true nature. Of course, I chose the latter. I wasn't going to allow a man, let alone a human, touch me without my consent. I took my fangs and ripped his throat out. I drained his body completely of blood and left him there.

"Oh."

"His family had begun to hunt me down. I'm sure you have heard of them."

"Who were they?

"The Helsing family."

"No freakin way."

"I killed Professor Abraham Van Helsing's brother."

"I believed that I had killed all of them, but the bastard escaped."

"There isn't a death date for him."

"No surprise. I learned later on from my mother that a new monster had attacked him. It's possible to kill him. Many have tried and failed. He remained the way he had looked. The curse put on him is a bit complicated"

"Don't leave me hanging here!"

"Basically, he can regrow some of his limbs except his head. I believe that he has a metal arm since before I left, I made sure to rip it off of him. I thought he would die, but he hasn't, clearly."

"So do you like cut off his head and burn his body like they do to vampires in the movie?"

Carmilla rolled her eyes, "You need to stop watching those ridiculous movies. They're so inaccurate that it's not even funny."

"So….? I like them."

Carm waited until Laura calmed down a bit.

"I heard many rumors about how to kill him. It doesn't involve a spell or special weapon or a painting like Dorian Grey."

"Did you say 'Dorian Gay'?"

"Wow."

"Sorry, was trying to lighten the mood."

"It's okay, Creampuff. Anyways, after you rip off his head, it has to be hidden or else he can 'call' his body back to him."

"That is so creepy…"

"No need to worry, Laura. We're safe and there's nothing to be afraid of. It's not easy to find the place."

 **xxx**

Emma was driving the cruiser back to her home with Regina. This gave her time to think about where to go from here with the girls. First, she was going to feed them. She would play the rest by ear.

She opened the door and headed straight to the kitchen.

"Hey you two, I got you some greasy food goodness."

She saw them eating things from the fridge. Laura was eating some chinese leftovers and Carmilla was eating a burger.

"What the hell! Those are MY leftovers!"

"Regina said anything in the fridge is fair game. Your name wasn't on it either."

Carmilla said as she continued to devour the burger.

Laura blushed a little, "I'm so sorry, Emma!"

"The junk food in there is obviously mine. Regina doesn't eat all that fatty crap."

"What have I told you about keeping that horrible food in my fridge?!"

Emma gulped nervously and turned around, "Hey Baby."

"Don't you dare 'Hey Baby' me. I want them to eat healthy food, no what you eat!"

While the two had an argument, Laura and Carmilla finished what they were eating. Then, they grabbed what Emma had bought and were eating it.

"You are a bad influence on them!"

"Why are you yelling at me? They're not even our kids!"

"Neither of us are 'kids'. Laura is almost legal and I'm older than you."

"No way, you're eighteen."

"I'm over 300 years old."

"What?!"

"I'm surprised you didn't finally tell her."

"I was keeping what we said confidential."

"Are you like Ruby? A werewolf?"

"I'm better, I have fangs." Carm revealed them and pretended to 'attack' her burger.

"I just lost my appetite. What's next? Is Laura going to tell me she can turn into a cat?"

"Carm turns into a Panther."

"Just great! This is exactly what I need."

.

 **xxx**

The four of them settled down in the dining room.

"I think we should play drunk Twister."

"Emma, that highly seems appropriate."

"After learning all that crazy stuff, I think I deserve to be able to relax!"

"I can't get drunk and Laura is a _very_ light weight."

"You can't get drunk?"

"Perks of being a vampire, I guess."

"Bull shit!"

"Language."

"English."

 **xxx**

Carmilla easily moved the dining room table and chairs to clear the way so they can lay the Twister mat on the floor.

Emma was far gone by this point and Laura was very giggly over drinking barely a full glass of wine. Regina was more relaxed after drinking her apple cider. She was so different than being so serious all the time.

 _Emma had drank so much alcohol that the scattered bottles were everywhere. She made a circle around herself._

"Alright Leather Pants, bring it on."

"I told you that I can't get drunk! You'll be dead before you 'win'."

"Oh yeah? Just try me, Pasty Face."

"Are you seriously calling me ugly?"

"Yes!"

"I have met some hideous vampires in the past. I'm obviously not ugly."

"You totally are."

Carm leaned in a bit too close to Emma and purred, "Are you sure you want to challenge me, Blondie?"

Regina had a scowl on her face and wanted to intervene. Laura tried to give her a reassuring look, "She isn't interested in Emma."

Emma should've been a stuttering mess.

"I'm married, dammit!"

"What?!"

"Oh oops. I mean, I'm with Regina!"

"You have clearly had enough to drink."

 **xxx**

Twister was finally set up. Emma and Carmilla were more competitive than ever.

"So what happens if you lose, Burger Stuffer?"

"I won't lose, but if I do, then I'll wear a Snow White costume."

"I forbid it, Emma Swan!"

"I'm an adult, I can do whatever I want!"

"If I lose, then I'll wear bright colors for twenty four hours."

Emma held out her hand, "You got yourself a deal."

Carmilla shook her hand, "May the best one win."

 **xxx**

The Twister mat was larger than normal, but only three could play at a time. Regina offered to sit out and spin it for them. Her excuse was that she wasn't "limber" enough. Emma knew that was a total lie, but she was in competitive mode, so she ignored it.

Regina called out where each hand and foot should be on the mat.

The game seemed to go on forever. Laura had lasted longer than they thought.

She fell over and giggled, "I'm out, guys!" She rolled over until her back hit Regina's heel. Laura clumsily got to her feet and sat next to her. She rested her head on Regina's shoulder.

It hadn't been very long, but Laura felt more than welcomed when she arrived. It even felt like a second home.

 **xxx**

Carmilla and Emma were so close that if someone saw them through the window, it would look like such a compromising position.

Carmilla was on top of Emma, just barely touching. Their limbs weren't tangled up, yet.

"If you fart, I swear that it will be your last."

Emma laughed, "I bet you fart in your sleep."

"Vampires don't do something like that. We can't breathe."

"You totally fart."

There was a small sound and Carmilla made a face, "That is so vile!"

Emma kept laughing until she started to choke, "Oh God, it came over here!"

Regina and Laura's faces mimicked the others' faces. The brunette out a force field around her and Laura to keep the smell out.

"What did you eat?"

"That's none of your beeswax!"

"How has Regina not broken up with you? This is wickedly toxic. I wouldn't share the same bed with you."

"Well I'm glad you're not my girlfriend! You eat worse than I do."

"You got shitty manners."

"You...you are a wannabe emo kid."

"Shut up and move your ass!"

"Language!"

"French."

"Fuck."

 **xxx**

Emma tried to move her right hand onto the green circle, but her hand slipped. Her foot also slid and hit Carmilla's foot.

Both of them fell at the same time.

"You are heavy like an elephant! Get the get off of me."

"We know you like me on top."

"Sorry buddy, but only Regina is on top. I bet you're a bottom."

"Hah, so you admit that you're a bottom."

"Move or I'll knee you in the crotch."

"You both lost, you know." Laura said and Regina tried to hide the smile behind her hand.

"That doesn't count!"

"Emma fell first, so I win!"

"Actually, you fell at the same time. You two made a deal and need to honor it." Regina said seriously.

Emma and Carmilla scowled at one another.


	9. Chapter 9

"Why didn't you stop me before I made that deal?" Emma whined to Regina.

"I was clearly inebriated, so I wasn't be able to think rationally."

"Where did you find this?"

"Your mom."

"Haha, not funny."

"No, I'm serious. Snow had a cosplay version of "her" Disney dress."

"I'm not going to bother asking why."

"Yes, it's best not to. I did and she talked for over an hour about it. You know how she is." Regina said as she rolled her eyes.

"Oh Carm, you look adorable!"

The leather pants wearing Carmilla Karnstein was wearing hot pink clothes. Not bright enough to blind people.

She wore a pink headband with pink cat ears attached. The shirt said, "I'm the Cat's Meow" in sparkles. There were matching pants that had a tail on the back too.

"This is fashion homicide." Carmilla muttered.

Laura straightened her girlfriend's cat ear, "No, it's just a new look for you!"

"Twenty-four hours of this torture. I'd rather have you stake me."

"You need to wear the wig or else it doesn't complete the look." Regina said as she tried to put it on Emma's head as they walked down the stairs.

"Hell no! If you come near me one more time with that thing, then there will be no sexy time!"

Regina stopped, "I won't even touch you until you take that hideous thing off."

Emma put on the wig, "Do I look like my mom now?"

Regina threw the wig in the air and a fireball turned it to ash immediately. "Black isn't really your color, Dear."

"Come on, Carm, you have to leave the house! You can't stay cooped up in there."

"Watch me."

Laura had her hands on her hips, "Carmilla what-ever-your-middle-name-is Karnstein, you are going out with me because I said so!"

Carmilla poked her head out of the bedroom door, "Sorry Creampuff, the answer's no." She was about to shut the door on her girlfriend when she saw Laura with a bag of chocolate.

"Is that what I think it is?"

"Yep!"

Carmilla tried to lean in to see what the flavor was, but Laura hid it behind her back. She knew that chocolate was like catnip for Carmilla.

"You know you want to spend time with me in here, Cupcake." Carmilla purrs and Laura could feel her face heat up. She tried to keep her ground both literally and figuratively.

If she gave in now, she wouldn't be able to show off how adorable her girlfriend looked in pink. Laura felt like her stomach had butterflies in it. Carmilla's purring always found a way to get into all of her thoughts.

Laura shook her head, "Maybe later, Carm!" She walked into the room and gently tugged on her vampire girlfriend's arm. Carmilla reluctantly came out of the room with her.

Emma and Regina heard loud footsteps coming down the stairs. Carmilla was practically stomping down each step angrily with a happy Laura behind her.

Emma burst out laughing, "You look so lame. Do you have enough pink on you?"

"At least I don't look like a pathetic imitation of Snow White."

"Take that back!"

"Make me!"

Regina chuckled, "Now children, it's time for Storybrooke to see how _wonderful_ you two look."

Emma and Carmilla both glared at Regina.

The four of them entered the diner and Ruby was heard laughing behind the counter.

She tried to hide, but Emma saw her.

"Yeah yeah, laugh it up while you can."

Ruby smirked, "Pink's really your color, Carmilla

"

"Shut up."

Ruby laughed even more, "I can't take you seriously while you're wearing that."

She turned towards Emma, "I'm not sure how Snow would feel seeing you in...that."

"I hope that she _doesn't_ see me like this."

Regina chuckled, "You can't avoid her forever, Emma."

Laura walked straight up to Carmilla and gave her a kiss on the cheek, "You look so cute!"

Carmilla would've said a snarky comment, but the damn pink was making her feel like a docile kitten and not a powerful and majestic panther.

The four of them sat in the infamous _Swan-Mill's Booth_. Ruby had the plaque especially made for them. Nobody could sit in it unless Emma or Regina approved.

Normally Emma would be sitting with Regina, but Regina chose to sit next to Laura.

Ruby held a notepad in her hand and tried to keep a straight face, "What can I get you today?"

"I feel like I should be eating porridge." Emma grumbled.

"I feel like I should be eating unicorn cereal that can shit out rainbows."

"Well _ladies_ , we don't have either of those here."

"Artery clogging burger it is then!" Emma said with a grin.

"I'm totally down for that. Carm?"

"I have to die somehow."

"Aren't you already dead?" Emma asked with a confused look on her face.

"Yes, but at least it's my _choice_ , unlike this outfit. I miss my leather pants."

Evening had arrived, so both Emma and Carmilla were looking at the clock in the living room.

"Three. Two. One!"

Their outfits came off to reveal what they wore underneath.

"You wore that outfit with that t-shirt and your leather pants underneath?"

"It's amazing what vampires can do."

Emma rolled her eyes, "Shut up, Vampy."

"Your jeans look like they're painted on."

"Regina likes them."

"Gross."


	10. Chapter 10

Van Helsing, the infamous hunter of creatures, mainly ones of the damned, noticed that those creatures were nowhere in sight.

He decided to investigate the town more and get to know who the citizens were. Dr. Whale, personally, had made his skin crawl.

Van Helsing himself wasn't the great looking, but at least he had morals, unlike the doctor.

After all, who gains any pleasure from cutting open a body, let alone dissecting them?

Van Helsing did murder creatures, but he did it for the betterment of mankind.

Did he feel sympathy for them? He would like to admit that he didn't, but he did.

The _only_ creature that he lacked sympathy for was a creature of the damned that had slaughtered his entire family and was a part of the Karnstein family.

She might have changed her name, but her youthful appearance was imprinted into his memory.

She did all she could to permanently kill him, but she had failed, every time.

Perhaps these newcomers that Dr. Whale, if he could even be referred to as a Doctor, could potentially be of the Karnstein family or know of them.

He did recall that Dr. Whale had referred to another creature living among them and there were two.

His main quest all his life was to kill that Karnstein, so if a human or another creature would come to her aid, then it was probably because they were under her spell.

Nobody would ever be that foolish to help her.

 **xxx**

Ruby felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up when she saw this mysterious man enter the diner.

Something was clearly off about him and it made her feel very uneasy. She tried to remind herself to stay professional, no matter what.

Granny was preparing to leave with her crossbow when she saw the man that had made Ruby uneasy.

The older woman frowned and had made a motion for Ruby to get into the kitchen.

Ruby felt herself relax when she saw her grandmother signal her to go into the kitchen.

Van Helsing put his hat down on the counter, "I didn't mean to make the young lady uneasy. I'm only here to help someone in town."

Granny raised an eyebrow, "Who is it?"

"I'm afraid that I can't say who."

He paused for a moment, "I'm surprised that a woman like yourself would wield such a weapon as that."

"You don't think I can hold my own?"

"Oh no, I didn't mean that! I just meant that it was an interesting choice. Not many like using a crossbow, but I prefer it."

Granny laid her crossbow down next to Van Helsing's hat.

"What is this favor?"

"The favor involves obtaining specimens."

"I hope you're not planning on harming the citizens of Storybrooke."

"Not at all. I'm looking for one in particular."

"Oh?"

"They go by the name of Karnstein."

"Karnstein? I'm afraid that I haven't heard of anyone going by that name."

 **xxx**

Ruby froze when she heard the man mention Carmilla's last name and tried to leave out the backdoor. She had to warn them and soon.

Dr. Whale had been crossing the street when he saw Ruby.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"I'm going to see Emma. What do you want, Whale?"

"I need to ask you a favor."

Ruby could smell that something was off about him today.

She continued to walk when he had crossed the street over to her so they were now facing one another.

Did she smell alcohol?

"I told you that I'm going to Emma's!"

He took out a syringe, "If you take one step, there's nothing that will stop me from telling that man, Van Helsing, in there to shoot your hag of a grandmother!

So go ahead, go to Emma's, but your old granny's blood is on _your_ hands, just like Peter's is."

Ruby let out a growl but did nothing as Dr. Whale had used that horrendous syringe to paralyze her.

 _One down, one more to go_.

Before meeting Ruby, Dr. Whale had poured alcohol on himself for Ruby to fall for his plan.

He went behind the dumpster, pulled out a wagon, and put Ruby in it. He covered her with a large blanket.

Dr. Whale was on his way to the hospital, specifically to his lab.

 **xxx**

Van Helsing could tell something was off about Granny.

"What are you? Not human, obviously."

Granny hadn't answered him.

He held up his hands, "I won't harm you or your granddaughter. All I wish to know is if you know of a Karnstein."

"Why is this Karnstein so important to you?"

"She slaughtered my family and tried to kill me as well, but I had outwitted her. I have spent my entire life trying to kill her. Once I take my revenge, I can find peace."

"How do you know that you'll find peace?"

"I would sleep easy knowing that she could do no more harm."

"And how exactly do you intend to kill her?"

"I would drive a stake through her heart, decapitate her, and burn her body to ash. There are other methods, but that is a guarantee that she couldn't return."

"You swear on your life that you would not harm anybody that is from Storybrooke, correct?"

Granny looked the man in his eyes.

One who looks you directly in the eyes, shows respect.

Avoiding the gaze shows deceit.

Van helsing picked up his hat, "I swear upon my dead family's graves."

Granny heard his sincerity and his eyes reflected the same.

"Well, I don't know of any Karnstein."

Van Helsing nodded and touched the tip of his hat. "Thank you, Ma'am."

As he was about to cross the threshold, Granny asked, "What's your name?"

"Van Helsing."

 **xxx**

Dr. Whale had made his way with Ruby to his lab. He couldn't believe how easy it was to get his first specimen!

He didn't dare make an attempt to take Granny. She would've had him fighting for his life.

No, guilt was s stronger weapon and Ruby was the perfect victim.

He had strapped her down onto his autopsy table and pulled over all his shiny instruments.

He made sure that it was made of silver, so it would be a very painful process.

It was something that he got off to.

He was about to put the scalpel to Ruby's chest when he heard heavy boots walking down stairs.

He gave a huff as he angrily threw his scalpel onto the small table, scattering his perfectly aligned instruments.

"What is the means for this interruption? Can't you see that I'm working?!"

Dr. Whale had regretted what he said the moment he saw Van Helsing.

"I gave that woman my word that no harm would come to anybody in this town, especially her granddaughter!

I could smell your filthy stench as soon as I left. You have this horrible scent that makes me wish to vomit."

"I...I wasn't going to do anything invasive! Just do testings that wouldn't hurt."

"Oh? Then what are these metal instruments here? Why is she strapped down?"

Dr. Whale was shaking with fear to do anything.

Van Helsing shoved the poor excuse of a man out of his way and carefully began to unstrap Ruby.

Dr. Whale, the weasel, had picked up his scalpel and stabbed Van Helsing in the back.

Van Helsing had cried out in pain as he pulled it out of his back.

Ruby finally stirred and was confused when she saw that creepy man from the diner.

What was he doing here with Dr. Whale?

Van Helsing held the scalpel and pointed it towards Dr. Whale, "The deal we made was severed the moment you took this young woman. I'm no longer in your service.

If I hear you trying to harm _anybody else,_ I will personally torture you in the most painful way possible.

You better pray that I don't see you again!"

Dr. Whale was slipping on the floor as he cowardly ran away.

Van Helsing turned toward Ruby and the rage had vanished from his face.

"Had he hurt you?"

"Who the hell are you? What have you done to my grandmother?"

He looked confused, "Your Grandmother? She is safe and sound."

"But Dr. Whale had said you were going to hurt her."

He frowned, "I would've never done such a thing! He's a lying little weasel that needs to

know his place."

Ruby looked into the man's eyes and knew that she saw that he told the truth.

He held out his hand and she took it.

"You know I could've saved myself."

Van Helsing just smiled, "If you're anything like your Grandmother, then I had not an inkling of doubt in my mind."


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: This chapter will be a bit lighter in the beginning and then get more serious as it goes on.**

 **I personally made Dr. Whale a character that you could hate and made Van Helsing a bit more "human".**

 **At first, I wanted Van Helsing to be hated as much as Dr. Whale, but decided against it.**

 **xxx**

Laura and Carmilla were in the kitchen with Emma. The Sheriff was putting a box of the cereal, Chokoa Crunch, to eat. It was a purple box with a creepily smiling vampire version that looked like a better version of the Count Dracula from Sesame Street.

Emma had grabbed from the fridge milk box titled "Soy Tasty" with MINE written on it in red sharpie.

"Emma, don't drink that! It's Carm's…"

Laura wasn't able to finish the sentence before Emma had poured out the synthetic blood onto her cereal.

"Oh gross! What the hell, Carmilla?"

"Laura was warning you, but you _didn't_ listen."

"You have to be more careful with this stuff."

"This _stuff_ is saving me and keeping everyone safe."

"Yeah well, you need to label it better."

"The label was perfectly fine before."

"It's okay Emma, the same thing happened to me when Carmilla was my roommate from hell."

"No surprise that she was a bad one."

Carmilla rolled her eyes, "What can I say? I hadn't planned to fall in love with a nerdy blonde, but it happened."

"I didn't intend to fall in love with a woman that didn't want me to be with my son, but life's weird that way."

Laura smiled, "It's just nice to see that things worked out for the both of us."

"Is there anything else that I need to be aware of?"

"If it says _MINE_ in red sharpie, don't touch."

"Why is some of the food labeled like that? That's obviously not blood!"

"Regina wanted me to get you off your _diet_."

"Hah, like hell I will!"

"I put blood in every since one of those burgers."

Emma wasn't going to take the risk, so she closed the fridge.

 **xxx**

Granny had let out a sigh of relief when she saw Van Helsing bring Ruby back.

"I smelled that horrible man and was worried."

"He ran away like a little bitch."

Granny chuckled, "I see."

She turned towards Van Helsing and the two exchanged a private conversation.

"I assume that you are working for Dr. Whale."

"Not anymore. Once I saw that he had taken your granddaughter, I immediately canceled our contract. I might not like the idea that the both of you aren't human, but you're not causing any harm to this town."

He paused for a moment, "I best be on my way."

"How will you be getting home?"

"I'm not sure, but it will happen by nightfall."

 **xxx**

Carmilla was becoming restless and as the night approached, she had made the decision that it's time to leave.

The four of them had just finished eating dinner when Carmilla said, "Laura, we need to leave."

"But we just got here, Carm!"

"We have overstayed our welcome, Laura."

"We haven't even been here for two weeks!"

"I know, but we can't keep imposing on Emma and Regina."

Regina said,"You two aren't imposing, but we do need to figure out how the two of you can cross the town line. I might know someone who might be able to solve this predicament."

 **xxx**

The four of them were looking at the town line and Rumpelstiltskin was with them.

"I'm surprised that I was contacted about how to cross the town line. I knew that we had newcomers, but this is the first time that I have actually seen them."

"Hi, I'm Laura and this is my girlfriend, Carmilla."

Laura offered her hand and Rumple had shook it.

"Well Dearies, it's time that we begin."

Rumple no longer needed his cane, which he was grateful for, so he could inspect the line better.

Everyone in Storybrooke was able to leave, so he was in no danger.

"What happened when you tried to cross the line before?"

"I was holding Laura when I tried to cross over it and felt like I was burning from the inside out. It was a lot worse than being exposed to the sun for a long period of time."

"Ah, a vampire then. Have you tried to have Laura cross it by herself?"

"No, I couldn't risk that."

"You never told me that you got burned!" Laura said.

Carmilla sighed, "I didn't want to worry you. Regina and I think I probably couldn't cross because I'm a vampire. You might have a better chance though."

Rumple nodded as he stood up, "That maybe the case, but there's only one way to find out. The problem is that once someone crosses this line, there's a possibility that they can't find this place again. Does anybody have a spell prepared for it?"

"I was waiting on you, Rumple, because you have the rest of the ingredients that I need." Regina said.

"Of course, Your Majesty. By all means gather what you need to in my shop."

There was a purple puff of smoke and a moment later, Regina appeared once more with the rest of the ingredients.

Regina had made the potion without any trouble.

"I was only able to make enough for one person. It will take hours to make a new one."

 **xxx**

Carmilla was staring at the town line and looked back at Laura, "You need to be the one to leave."

"What?! I'm not leaving you!"

"You have to. Look at me, Laura."

The vampire rested her forehead against her human's.

"You can cross over safely and you can go to your Dad's. You'll be safe there and…"

"No, I refuse! My Dad knows about you and he trusts you. Even if he does go overboard at times, he specifically told me that you were the right one for me."

"I understand that, but Laura, you'll be safe out there. In here, you're trapped."

"You can't make that decision for me!"

"I can make any decision that is deemed fit if it means that you'll be protected."

Laura shouted, "Carmilla Karnstein, you're stuck with me until the end of my days, so if you ever send me across that line, I will _never_ forgive you!"

 **xxx**

Van Helsing had been on his way to the town line when he heard the name that made his blood boil.

He heard someone shout, "Carmilla Karnstein, you're stuck with me until the end of my days, so if you ever send me across that line, I will _never_ forgive you!"

The slayer had picked up his pace until he was hiding in the bushes to see what would happen between Carmilla and the human in front of her.

 **xxx**

"Laura, this isn't a damn joke! _I_ need to know that you're safe. What if…"

Carmilla felt someone or something slam into her, knocking her off of her feet. The being that had collided into her body had caused them to be a few feet from the line.

She grew tense when she smelled the familiar scent.

"How the hell did you find me?"

Van Helsing stood up, but he had a special blade pointed at Carmilla's throat, "If you move one muscle, Karnstein, I will do it right in front of everyone."

Laura wasn't prepared at all.

One minute, Carmilla was in front of her and talking, then the next, she was knocked to the ground by someone.

She realized that the individual that now had a sword pointed at Carmilla's throat was none other than the man named Van Helsing.

 **xxx**

Emma, Regina, and Rumple didn't move a muscle when they saw that Carmilla was in a risky situation.

Laura tried to stay calm, " , please let Carmilla go! She isn't the same vampire you met before."

Van Helsing put slight pressure on the blade so that Carmilla remained where she was.

"I don't exactly know what your relationship to Karnstein is, but I can assure you that _nothing_ has changed. She is _still_ the same monster that took away my family from me."

"Carmilla's my girlfriend."

Van Helsing frowned when facing Laura, "You would be with a vampire knowing what she has done to my family?"

"She did horrible things in her past, but like I said, she's changed! She tried to rescue the girls that she gave to her mother, defied her mother for me, and set her past love free by surrendering her human life. Please, let her go."

"I'm afraid that I can't do that. I don't know what spell she has put you under, but it will vanish once she is executed."

He returned his gaze to Carmilla, "Before I kill you, is there anything that you want to do?"

"Yes, let Laura cross the line."

"Even when facing your own death, you care about what happens to a human?"

"She's more than just any human and she shouldn't have to see this."

Van Helsing sighed, "Very well, I will let her cross the line. The others must go though since this is between you and me."

Carmilla didn't argue with him.

Emma wanted to give this Van Helsing guy some trouble, but Regina held her back.

"Emma, we will have to help them from afar. I want to intervene as much as you do, but we can't risk him harming anybody else."

The blonde Sheriff knew that she was right, so she allowed Regina to teleport them away from where everyone was gathered.

Rumple was more amused by how this was going to town out, but didn't want to deal with something as troublesome as Van Helsing.

He had returned to his shop and put a magic spell that would silence whatever was about to happen.

He had seen more than enough bloodshed in his time, so he doubted that he was "missing out" on anything.


	12. Chapter 12

Carmilla stood up and dusted off of her leather pants as she walked towards Laura.

She made sure that as she walked towards Laura, she stopped in front of the potion, and made sure that it was crushed by her boot. She heard the glass shatter beneath her feet.

If she was going to die, then she wouldn't allow Laura to come back to claim her body, if there was anything left of her.

"Carmilla, it'll take hours to make a new one of those again!"

Laura was trying to stay calm, but couldn't stop shaking as Carmilla came towards her.

Carmilla wrapped her arms around Laura and held her so tight that Laura felt her lungs burn. The vampire released her, so her human could breathe again.

"Carm, you can't do this! I won't leave you like this."

Carmilla pressed her forehead against Laura's. It was something that usually would comfort both of them, but it didn't calm either of them this time.

"You're the only person I ever found worth saving. You and no one else."

"No, Carm…"

Laura held onto Carmilla's shirt tightly and Carmilla could feel Laura's tears falling on her shirt. The more Laura cried, the more her shirt became soaked.

"Hey, no crying, Creampuff. We'll see each other again."

"How can you say that at a time like this? There's no coming back this time!"

"Shh, Laura."

Carmilla kissed her girlfriend for the last time.

"You're Laura Hollis, someone that's stronger than me. You'll make it through this."

"How do you know?"

"I know because you saved me, even after all I had done. You had the chance to run away, but you stayed. Laura, you have to let me go."

Laura gripped tighter onto Carmilla's shirt and closed her eyes, "I can't."

 **xxx**

 _In the Dean's apartment, Laura and Carmilla were cuddling in a large leather seat._

 _They were sitting face to face and Carmilla was stroking Laura's hair as she read her a line from the book she was reading._

" _He understands that love doesn't mean the same thing to everyone."_

" _That's the saddest thing that I ever heard."_

 **xxx**

"You have to, Laura. There's no rescuing me this time, the way you did when Vordenberg was going to execute me. You'll be okay. You were okay without me before I came into your life, so you'll be okay now. If you're lucky, when you cross that line, you'll forget all about me."

"I don't want to forget about you! Why do you have to be so stubborn?"

"It's just the way I am, Creampuff."

 **xxx**

Carmilla saw that Laura wasn't going to budge, so she began to walk backwards, and Laura had no other choice but to follow because she wasn't going to let go of her.

She stopped the moment that she felt her heel begin to burn, so Carmilla moved forward only slightly.

"This is goodbye, Creampuff. Hey, look at me."

Laura had tears still streaming down her cheeks, "It's not goodbye, Carmilla. Y-You're not going anywhere."

Carmilla made Laura look her in the eyes, "You're right, I'm not, but you are."

Laura felt Carmilla turn them so that Laura's back was facing the town line.

She felt Carmilla push her over the line and she expected to feel a burning sensation, but nothing happened.

 **xxx**

As soon as Carmilla had pushed her, Laura could see the town line at her feet was fading away and even the sign that said "Welcome to Storybrooke" was no longer visible.

The only thing that Laura saw was an empty road that continued on and on.

She ran forward, hoping to be able to cross back into Storybrooke, but nothing happened.

"Carmilla!"

Laura didn't know how long she had screamed Carmilla's name, but she fell onto her knees, the same way that Carmilla had done so many centuries ago when Elle had left her.

 **xxx**

" _Sometimes I think it's worse to live with the reminder of what you lost."_


	13. Chapter 13

**~*Author's Notes*~**

I wanted to make Van Helsing more appealing to readers because he _isn't_ a bad guy, he's in mourning.

I have changed the timeline and since Magic Beans can send people to different realms/alternate universes, it would make sense that Dr. Whale could've ended up in Van Helsing's.

 **~*TRIGGER WARNING*~**

There's a brief mention of Carmilla being attacked by Van Helsing's brother, but it isn't as detailed as before.

There might be some gore mentioned in the next few chapters because I hate Dr. Whale, at least in this fic, anyways.

 **xxx**

Carmilla stood still as she saw that look in Laura's eyes the moment that she pushed her over the line.

There were so many things that she saw reflected in her girlfriend's eyes, but the main one was _betrayal_.

There was nothing that would've changed things.

Carmilla would've done anything to keep Laura with her.

Which was worse?

Forcing Laura to watch her die?

Losing Laura forever?

 **xxx**

Van Helsing didn't imagine that what he had just witnessed was something that a _human_ would do, not a vampire.

This vampire, that had some humanity left within her, was still the one that had slaughtered his family without a second thought.

He could strike her down where she stood, but he didn't believe that he should do it while her back was facing him because that, in itself, was cowardly.

If she was going to die, he wanted to see the hope fade from her eyes because then, she would know the true meaning of loss.

 **xxx**

"I think I'd like to be dead now."

She said it more to the sky than to him.

He heard the pain in Carmilla's voice, but the pain in her voice went much deeper. It was the pain that he had heard the moment he learned that his brother was killed.

She had turned around and saw Van Helsing raise the sword above her head.

As odd as it was, the man had closed his eyes.

 **xxx**

All she could do now was wait for him to use his sword.

Carmilla could've sworn that she felt her life with Laura passing before her eyes.

It didn't just involve what had already happened, it also involved what their future might look like.

 **xxx**

 _They got that apartment in Paris that Laura had talked about all those years ago._

 _They made love under the stars._

 _They had adopted a baby together._

 _Carmilla was given human life once more, for the second time._

 _Laura was crying when their baby was sent off to school, graduated from high school, graduated from college, and was married._

 _They would have grandkids and Carmilla would age with Laura._

 **xxx**

That's how it was supposed to be, but as Carmilla felt the blade dig into her shoulder, all of it was fading away.

Laura, and their future, were fading away from her mind and the only thing she was able to focus on was the pain.

 **xxx**

"You look me in the eyes when you're killing me." Carmilla's voice never wavered.

Van Helsing knew that this blade could've cut through Carmilla so easily, but when he swung it downward, he forced it to stop into her shoulder.

He was hesitating and this wasn't a common occurrence for him.

"Before I send you back to the dirt, where you belong, tell me one thing. Why did you have to kill _everyone_ that I loved and cared about?"

"I killed your brother because he tried to…"

Carmilla didn't finish the sentence, but Van Helsing knew what she was about to say.

 **xxx**

It wasn't the first vile act that his brother had done and she wouldn't have been his first victim.

His family had ignored it and said that it was just something about his brother that "nobody could change".

He had confronted his brother several times about this. He had stopped his brother every time except once, when it came to Carmilla.

He had turned away when he heard his brother tear her dress open.

When he turned back around, he hadn't noticed what had happened until he saw her pass by him, covered in what appeared to be black ink.

He discovered his brother's body and he mourned, but he mourned for the sole reason that he was dead.

He couldn't harm anymore women and for that, he was silently grateful that Carmilla had put an end to him.

But what about the rest of his family?

Hadn't she slaughtered them too?

"Did the rest of my family deserve it too?"

"The tales they tell and even the book in the library here in town tells one lie. I lied to Laura about it."

"Isn't the truth that you slaughtered my family with your bare hands?"

"I hurt them, yes, but I didn't kill them."

"Why were you covered in blood when I saw you and standing so victoriously over their bodies?"

"I had found them like that, I was only investigating their deaths because as odd as it sounds, part of me actually liked the company of your family, to an extent."

Carmilla paused, "I don't kill families, no matter how terrible they are! With your brother, I had no choice. His blood was all over me, nobody else's."

Van Helsing sighed, "I know that you had no choice when it involved my brother."

"What?"

"You weren't going to be his first victim. I was able to stop him until it came to you. I tried to chase after you but…"

Carmilla wanted to kill him where he stood.

"You knew and did _nothing_?"

"No! I saved the other girls before he did anything. I believe he saw that I was in a crowded area and wouldn't be able to escape, so he took advantage of that. I had been trying to find ways to forgive myself."

"And you call me the _monster_."

Van Helsing shook his head to erase those thoughts of his brother from his mind.

"What happened after you investigated my family's death?"

"I learned that your family's death was meant to appear as though a vampire, like myself, had killed them. But I would never kill women or children.

Some men during those times were far from gentlemanly, but I admit that I had a soft spot for you. You weren't like the other men in your family. You were kind to me and full of hope. I thought my fate of being trapped in a coffin full of blood was the worse, but I was wrong."

"Who was it? Did you see?"

"I didn't see him, but I remembered how he smelled. My memory must've been buried somewhere because when I saw the man who masqueraded as a "doctor" here in Storybrooke, I just _knew_ it was him."

Van Helsing took the blade out of Carmilla and sheathed it.

"The man you're talking about is Dr. Whale."

"I believe he went by another name back then. Frankenstein?"

"Yes, he was infamous for reanimating beings that were meant to stay dead. I thought that perhaps he had done the same to you."

"No, but I would take having no choice to becoming a vampire over him reanimating me."

Carmilla sighed, "Is your quest for my death over?"

"I got the revenge I seeked."

"How?"

"You're a hollow and empty soul just like I am."


	14. Chapter 14

**~*Author's Note*~**

 **At the rate this fic is going, I wouldn't be surprised if I get to 20 chapters!**

 **I have to remind myself that this isn't only a Hollstein fic. lol**

 **xxx**

Emma had slammed her foot against the stonewall in anger as she and Regina had gone back to Regina's vault.

"Why did we leave them there? We should've helped them!"

Regina sighed, "You heard what that man said."

"So? They're important to us! They're like...like Henry, but it would be more like randomly "adopting" them. I actually got used to them being around."

"Are you saying that you actually _like_ Carmilla?"

"I plead the fifth on that one."

Emma conjured up a comfy chair to sit in, "What do we do now?"

Regina had all the ingredients she needed to make another potion, just to be safe and to be prepared for the worst, she took her time to make at least two.

She brought both unfinished potions with her so that each one could take its time settling. That was what had taken the most time, not the actual mixing of ingredients.

 **xxx**

The two of them had made their way up to the surface and headed in the direction of where they last saw Carmilla, Laura, and that strange man.

When they had arrived, Carmilla had a wound on her shoulder that was healing at incredible speed. The man had put his sword away and for some reason, Laura was nowhere in sight.

"Hey Carmilla, where's your girlfriend?" Emma asked as she cautiously walked towards the two.

"Laura's..."

Carmilla felt her throat constrict when she said her girlfriend's name. She still couldn't believe that although she pushed Laura over the line with the best of intentions, Carmilla was left with a gaping hole in her heart.

"How long will it take for you to make that potion again?"

"What happened?" Regina asked calmly.

"I thought she was in danger so I, I pushed her over the town line. I was trying to protect her from him!"

Van Helsing sighed, "You _were_ , but now, we have come to an understanding of what the situation is."

He turned towards Emma and Regina, "We need your help in hunting down Dr. Whale. He has caused much havoc in both of our lives and we wish to be rid of him, permanently."

"Look, whatever-your-name-is, we can't just go around murdering people in this town! As the Sheriff, I think we need to talk this over because I'm completely lost."

"Laura's more important right now, Van Helsing!"

" _Why_ do you care for a human? You'll outlive her just like you have outlived many others."

"It's because I love her."

"Love? How can a creature like you feel love or any other emotion? You're dead, in every sense of the word."

"I was until Laura came along. She changed me. Maybe you need someone like that to change you from a monster into a man."

Van Helsing looked at her, turned around, and walking away.

Emma stood right in front of Van Helsing, "You need to start explaining now."

The man stopped, more out of curiosity than anything else.

"Dr. Whale framed Miss Karnstein and made me believe that she was responsible for slaughtering my family. Perhaps he wanted me to destroy her because he wanted to dissect her. This was the originally reason that he wanted me here. I went along with it until the young werewolf was kidnapped. I freed her, of course. I don't harm humans, but this poor excuse of a man is an exception."

Emma muttered, "And I thought my life was drama filled…"


	15. Chapter 15

Laura was pacing back and forth, not leaving the spot even though she knew that Storybrooke had disappeared. She knew that no matter how crazy this was, that if Carmilla was still alive, she would get her back.

She wasn't going to allow herself to lose hope. Carmilla wasn't the type to die easily anyways. Maybe things seemed hopeless now, but Laura would make it back to Carmilla, whether she was dead or alive.

How long had it been now? Did an hour pass? Two? Three?

Laura had no idea because when Carmilla had pushed her, her stupid watch had stopped working. Carmilla had gave it to her for her birthday. It was black with an outline of a cat in white with red eyes.

She looked down at it and decided to keep it even if it had stopped working. It was a gift and was from someone precious to her. Hell, she'd even wear it for a fashion statement even if it didn't work.

Carmilla was her everything and always was. If she had to wear a broken watch so she knew how much she cared, then she would.

She was about to start walking off when a portal opened and a familiar face appeared.

"Hey Creampuff, I'm not dead."

"You're already dead."

"Well, deader or whatever."

"I am gonna slap the hell out of you."

"You better come in here to do it, we don't have a lot of time!"

"Okay you buttmunch."

•°•°•°•°•

Laura was now in the town and that when she slapped Carmilla.

"How the hell could you do that to me?! I don't even care if you were risking your life, you had no right to just push me away! I'd murder you if you weren't already dead. I want to do more than strangle your dumbass!"

Carmilla wasn't sure how to react. She was more in shock that Laura had actually slapped her and that she called her a "dumbass".

"You make me want to tear my hair out! I can't believe you thought this was okay! Arghhh!"

Emma was laughing softly in the background.

"Shut up, Blondie!"

"Not so high and mighty when your girlfriend is chewing you out!"

"Emma Swan, don't you dare laugh at Carmilla. This is serious and if you don't want to sleep on the couch tonight, then you will shut up."

"She told me to shut up!"

"You should shut up!"

"Excuse me, can you _both_ shut up so I can continue berating Carmilla, my girlfriend?"

"We're...still together?"

"Yes, even though you pushed me out of here! Did you think that you could get away with this? Just wait until we go home!"

Emma was covering her mouth as she laughed and stopped once Regina gave her a glare.

Van Helsing cleared his throat, "Not to interrupt your quarrel, but we need to get rid of this Dr. Whale."

"What's wrong with him?" Laura asked.

Carmilla and Van Helsing caught her up.

"We can't kill him, Carm."

"Why not? He ruined my life and Van Helsing's!"

"But killing people isn't right."

"I murdered someone for you on Christmas."

"Well that was different."

"Oh really? Why's that, Cupcake?"

"Because she was going to _kill_ me and maybe cannibalise me!"

"Oh no, she was going to murder you through cannibalising."

"You aren't helping my argument!"

"Look, we kill him or he kills us! I can't risk that."

"You're both undead, so who cares?"

"I care about _you_ , you imbecile! I care that he will try to get to me through you and will harm you. I can't risk that and I don't care what happens to me.

I'm sorry for loving you and wanting to make sure you don't get murdered!"

"Well then."

Carmilla held onto Laura tightly, "I love you and want you safe. If that means Van Helsing and I do it without you and the others, then we will. No casualties can happen."

"Woah Kid, you can't make decisions for us!"

"Emma, please! Just do this. I can't go out and rip this Dr. Whale to shreds if I know that Laura is in harm's way."

Emma sighed, "Fine, but if we like Laura too much, then we won't return her."

Carmilla rolled her eyes.

"Laura, please go with her?"

"Okay, but I'm not done yelling at you!"

"I know."

Before Laura went to Emma and Regina, she pulled Carmilla down to her height by her collar.

"If he comes back and tells me that you're dead, dead, I'm going to haunt your ass."

"How can you if you're still alive?"

"I'll find a way and ask Laf!"

Carmilla smiled, "I love you, Laura Hollis."

"I love you too, Dumbass McGee."


	16. Chapter 16

"Your lady likes to "put you in your place" a lot."

"She normally isn't like that."

"Of that I'm sure, but you did just risk her life by pushing her. What if she landed and cut her leg? Did you ever think of that?"

"My priority was getting her away from you!"

"Keep your voice down. If we're going to take him by surprise, then we best do it quietly."

They were finally at Dr. Whale's house and saw him walking up the stairs from the window.

"We can easily sneak into his house by climbing up the wall. Perhaps we look up there?"

"Fine, Helsing, anything to get me back to Laura."

 **xxx**

Dr. Whale was walking up the stairs to a large room where he heard a loud rattling noise. He opened the door and there was a woman that was chained to the floor.

Her dark locks resembled Carmilla's in every way, including the rest of her features. The only difference were two small scars that looked like fangs had pierced her neck.

The man took out his phone to record his voice.

"Subject A is still as insane as all those years ago.

Unknown what keeps her in this world even though she is over three hundred years old.

Success of being turned to a vampire has failed. Her daughter was successfully turned.

Unknown of what happened to the being that tried to turn Carmilla and her Mother.

Do the stories over how to kill a vampire true?"

He tapped on the screen to pause the recording.

He had to get Carmilla, but how could he?

 **xxx**

Carmilla was looking directly into the window and was thankful that Dr. Whale couldn't see her.

There was a woman chained to the floor and when their eyes locked, Carmilla almost fell. She was lucky that Van Helsing had caught her in time.

"Let's not die quite yet."

"M-My Mother is there."

"What?"

"My _real_ Mother is in there!"

"How?"

"I...I don't know."

"If I remember correctly, he can bring beings back from the dead. He did that to his first creation, did he not?"

"He did, but she doesn't look dead. She seems alive."

"I can see her and have you wait here if you wish."

"No, I want to see her!"

"We will wait for him to leave."

 **xxx**

Darkness had fallen by the time Dr. Whale had left.

The two of them opened the window and snuck inside.

The woman, Carmilla's Mother shrank back in terror.

"Mama, it's me, Mircalla."

Carmilla bent down and whispered, "It's me."

Her Mother looked at her for a long while before a small smile appeared.

"Little Mir."

Carmilla ran into her Mother's arms and held her close.

"Yes Mama, it's Little Mir."

Her eyes seemed to be glazed over a bit, but there was clarity now.

"Where have you been?"

"I was taken from you."

"You're so, so cold."

"It's cold in here."

Her Mother ran her hand through Carmilla's hair and hummed as she did so.

Carmilla held onto the chains and tore them apart easily. The shackles noisily fell to the ground.

There were loud footsteps racing up and Dr. Whale pushed the door open, which caused it to almost fly off the hinges.

"She spoke! How did this happen?"

He took out his phone to record, "Have her talk more."

"My Mother is _not_ some experiment!"

"I found her! Where were you?"

"I thought she was dead!"

"She clearly isn't and I don't know how it is possible. She hasn't spoken since I found her. I'm surprised that she even recognizes you. She's been delirious too. Those marks in her neck have never faded."

Carmilla focused on her neck and saw that she recognized the fang marks.

Each fang mark was like a fingerprint and she recognized it because the same ones had turned her.

"You are so sickly pale, Little Mir."

"Mama, please. I need you to be quiet so that we can go home."

She stood up and helped her Mother stand as well.

"Dr. Whale, you will _never_ harm my Mother ever again. She's a person, not a possession! Helsing, take him."

As Van Helsing approached Dr. Whale, he shouted, "Tell her what you are or I will!"

"I can't, she'll hate me!"

"Little Mir…"

Carmilla's Mother was using Carmilla as an anchor and was leaning on her daughter for support.

"Your "Little Mir" is _nothing_ but a filthy…"

Van Helsing gripped onto the back of his neck with his hand and Dr. Whale shut up.

"Cats do this to their babies."

Dr. Whale cried out, "S-She's a monster, a Vampire!"

Carmilla's Mother put her hand on top of Carmilla's heart and backed away.

"Monster, my Little Mir is a monster!"

"Mama, no, I'm not one! It wasn't by choice!"

"Mircalla…"

Carmilla looked at her Mother with tears in her eyes and the slap had freed the tears.

She felt nothing, but shame.


	17. Chapter 17

Carmilla stayed frozen to the spot as her Mother's words sank in. She felt the same way she had when Elle called her a Monster. It was out of fear.

Van Helsing had used rope lying on the floor, tied Dr. Whales wrists together, and pushed him down the stairs.

"If the fall didn't kill him, then he is just injured. Either way, he's out of our way."

Carmilla's Mother kept yelling, "Monster! Monster! Monster!"

"No Mama, I'm not a Monster! I don't hurt people."

"You have a serpent's tongue and I will not be fooled by you, Demon!"

"I'm your Little Mir, Mama."

"You were my Little Mir, but you are no longer her, no longer my daughter. You are nothing to me. Go back to wherever it is that you came from. Don't ever come back here."

"But Mama, who will take care of you?"

"I will take care of myself, I'm fully capable of doing so. Did you not think that all those years trapped here have been for nothing? I have learned so much and that abomination of a man deserves what he gets, whatever his fate may be."

"Please Mama…"

"Leave or I will stake you myself."

The tears didn't stop as Carmilla ran down the stairs, not even bothering to avoid hitting Dr. Whale with her foot.

Van Helsing didn't move.

"Do you love her?"

"Of course I do."

"Then why do you send her away?"

"She's no longer my daughter. My daughter died the day that she was taken from me. I am but a shell of her Mother. She doesn't need me nor do I want her."

" And if she longs for you to be her Mother again?"

"She won't have anybody to return to here."

Van Helsing sighed and took off his hat, "You need to see reasoning! She has thought that you have been dead and now you reject her, your own flesh and blood? If you were my Mother, I would be ashamed to give you that title."

He jumped down the stairs with ease and made sure to kick Dr. Whale's head enough to knock him out.

"Make sure that the doctor doesn't die here."

"I will not kill him, only have him live the way I had for years."

As he left, Van Helsing heard the rattling of chains and a loud cry for help, belonging to Dr. Whale.

"She's mad! Help me, Helsing! Help me!"

"You destroyed two lives today, I won't let you destroy another."

The farther he walked, the smaller Dr. Whale's house became. He ended up at the top of the hill and saw Carmilla sitting down on a tree stump. She wrapped her arms around herself and it looked like she was keeping herself warm.

"Why didn't she want me? Did she even love me or miss me while I was gone?"

"I do believe she mourned for you. What Mother wouldn't?"

"She never even looked for me!"

"This is not true."

"Where's proof?"

Van Helsing took out a scroll and handed it to her.

It had a drawing of her with a reward if she was found.

"Where did you find this?"

"It was on the ground as I was walking away. It must've blown out the window."

She held it to her chest and cried silently.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: I added something to Dr. Whale's past to make him more human.**

 **I wanted to kill him, but now even I don't know of his fate.**

Carmilla's Mother towered over the cowering man known as Dr. Whale or in another realm, Dr. Frankenstein.

"You think that you can get away with keeping me as a prisoner for years and treating me as a thing! You will know what I have awaiting you and I can promise you that it will make what you did yo me look like child's play."

Dr. Whale was now the one in chains and he could move only so much. He used this opportunity to hold onto her ankle.

"Please, have mercy! You were important to me and I treated you the best that I could given the circumstances.

I could've locked you away in an asylum in town and left you there."

"At least I would have been treated like a human and not an animal!"

"Without me, you would be lost and insane! At least with me, you were being looked after. If-If I wasn't the one that found you, then you would've never met your daughter again."

"She is _not_ my daughter anymore!"

"She used to be! She wanted to be with you and you threw her away like trash. You tell me that you wanted to be treated like a human, but you didn't act that way towards you daughter. She was willing to sacrifice _everything_ for you!"

"And what do you know about a relationship with child? Do you even have one?"

"I had a son, who died. I tried to bring him back to life with my science, but failed. I dedicated the rest of my life to reanimating him despite failing every time.

My wife left me and told me that I was desecrating his memory and his body by trying to bring him to life.

You may hate me with every fiber of your being, but don't take that out on your daughter."

"She's a Monster!"

"No, _you_ are the Monster."

She let those words sink in and fell to her knees, scraping them on the floor.

"She was taken from me and since that day, I had wondered what had happened to her."

"You finally have your answer. I don't care what happens to me, but I actually care about what happens to you and your daughter."

"What if she doesn't want me?"

"She loves you, that's all you need to know."

She stood up and before she left, she said, "I hope that nobody finds you for a long time."

Dr. Whale had said nothing in reply and just made an attempt to get comfortable.

 **xxx**

"You need to return to Laura."

"Why? I don't want her to see me like this."

"She has seen you worse off. If she still loves you after what you did ti her when you were protecting her, then she will love you through anything."

"What will you do?"

"I will wait for your Mother. What is her name?"

"Her name is Annika Karnstein."

"Austrian."

"Yes."

"Beautiful name."

"She was one of the most beautiful women in our town. She hasn't aged one bit and I don't understand why."

"Perhaps the woman that turned you…"

"Lilita Morgan."

"Yes, this Lilita, perhaps she transferred her powers to your Mother?"

"I don't know, Van Helsing!"

"I will deal with her. Go! This is not a request."

Carmilla wiped her eyes and went to find Laura in her giant cat form. She was grieving too much to care if anyone in town saw her.

 **xxx**

"So as I was saying, Carm can turn into this giant black cat!"

Laura was telling Emma and Regina about the adventures she had been on with Carmilla when she was a in her cat form. From the catnip that Laf had made to the cat toys that drove her nuts. It was just beyond fun.

There was a loud sound of something crashing into the door, but nothing happened.

"I got it!"

Laura hopped off the couch and opened the door.

"Carm?"

Carmilla changed back into her "human" form.

"My Mother, my real Mother, is back."


	19. Chapter 19

"She's what?"

"Dr. Whale had her chained to the floor. She recognized me and then reacted the way Elle dis. My own Mother _hates_ me."

Laura held her girlfriend close and lead her inside.

Carmilla was shaking as she sat down.

Laura squeezed Carmilla's hand before getting up.

"Let me go get you a glass of blood."

Regina waited patiently while Laura gave Carmilla the glass.

"She said I was a _Monster_."

The tears that fell down her face couldn't reflect how heartbroken she was. She remembered how her Mother affectionately called her, "Little Mir", even at eighteen years old.

 **xxx**

FLASHBACK

" _You will always be my Little Mir, my sweet Angel, my everything."_

" _Mama, I'm eighteen! I cannot be your Little Mir anymore My name is Mircalla."_

" _Sweetheart, you will forever be my Little Mir, no matter how old you are."_

" _Mama, will you love me no matter what?"_

"" _Of course. What silly question is that?"_

 **xxx**

"Am I a _Monster_?"

Regina said, "No Dear, you are far from it."

Emma said, "You're a pain in the ass half the time, but a Monster? No way. Hell, people thought Regina was one, but they turned around."

"I have killed countless of people!"

"As have I."

"I lured girls to their grave by sending them to my adoptive Mother."

"I killed and used whoever I wanted. I showed no mercy, even if they were children. Are you really trying to see if you're a Monster?"

"I want to see if Laura still loves me, even if I was a Monster!"

Carmilla was so angry that her shaking became much worse, but it wasn't due to fear.

"Of course I still love you. I loved you even when you told me about your past and I still love you now.

So take this stupid mug and drink it because it's hot and hurts my hands."

Carmilla took the mug and held it in between her hands.

"Your Mother can seriously go to Hell if she thinks that you're a Monster. She didn't get to see the amazing woman that you became. All she saw was what she believed was true."

 **xxx**

Van Helsing was leaning against a tree.

"We meet again, Annika."

"I didn't think I would see your ugly face again."

"Your daughter is a remarkable woman."

"She's...she's…"

"A beautiful person inside and out like her Mother?"

He took out his crossbow, "Tell me exactly why I shouldn't kill you right now!

I had to watch your daughter fall apart all those years without you.

Yes, I hunted her down myself and she won every time, but I saw _you_ in her. I saw a power woman that wouldn't allow anyone to stand in the way.

Right now, you are standing in _my_ way. You either apologize to your daughter and rebuild your relationship with her or I will hunt you down the way she did me and make your life a living nightmare.

What Dr. Whale did to you will be nothing compared to what _I_ can do.

I would make your choice because I am far from being a patient man."

"You're not a man, you're a Monster too!"

"Monsters started out as humans first."


	20. Chapter 20

"I would rather you kill me than to see her again."

"We both know that you don't want that."

Annika sighed, "I don't know if I can see her as anything else, but as the creature she is. She _deserves_ a Mother that would appreciate her as a daughter."

"You two can heal your relationship with one another. You won't know unless you try. I have no doubt that you have waited over three hundred years to find her, dead or alive.

Do what your heart tells you."

"My heart tells me to leave her be."

"In this case, your heart is being ruled by your head."

 **xxx**

"What are we going to do about your Mother?" Laura whispered.

"It depends on Van Helsing because he's waiting for her now."

"Why?"

"I don't know."

"Is there a way to contact him?"

"Smoke signals might work."

"Be serious, Carm!"

Laura was relieved that Carmilla was able to be sarcastic. It meant that she was making an attempt to relax.

"He's a big boy so he can decide what to do."

 **xxx**

"We can stand here for hours, but deep down, you know I'm right."

"What if she cannot forgive me?"

"You won't know unless you talk to her."

"Very well, take me to where she is. I will try to rebuild whatever there is left to salvage."

 **xxx**

"You're a bigger idiot than I imagined! You think it's okay to just let your emotions rule you, but it's not."

"Your emotions are controlling you too."

"At least I don't do the whole solo pity party every time something bad happens."

"You can take your words and shove them."

"I'm your girlfriend, you can't talk like that to me."

"You're a pain in the ass for a girlfriend."

Emma sighed, "Should I intervene…?"

"No Emma, they need to get this out of their system."

"I'm going to forever be a pain in the ass, but I'm _your_ pain in the ass."

"Yeah you are and you always will be _my_ pain in the ass."

"Did we just make up?"

"Yeah Creampuff, we did in our weird way."

"You still deserve a night on the couch."

"Half a night."

"No!"

"One hour."

"Fine, but only because I can't sleep without you next to me."

Emma made a face, "This is pretty gay."

Regina nudged her in the ribs, "Let them have their moment."

Laura kissed Carmilla's cheek, "I love you, Carm."

"I love you too."


	21. Chapter 21

Dr. Whale was trying to unchain himself, which was frustrating. He crawled to a small box that contained a key to the lock. He inserted the key and gave a sigh of relief once he heard the click.

He dusted himself off, ran out of his house, and headed in the direction of the Mayor's house.

 **xxx**

Annika was outside of Regina's home with Van Helsing by her side.

"You need to knock."

"I...I don't know if I can do this."

"I will knock if you don't."

She took a deep breath and knocked.

The face that she saw wasn't Carmilla's, but a younger woman with dirty blonde hair.

"Hello, Van Helsing."

"Hello, Laura. This is Annika, Carmilla's Mother."

Laura stepped outside and shut the door.

"How do you have the nerve of showing your face here?

Do you even know how much pain Carmilla's been in since she discovered you were alive?

She was doubting whether she had any humanity left and I haven't seen her this insecure since I met her!

This is all your fault and if you know what's best for Carmilla, then you'd leave."

"I'm her Mother."

"A pretty shitty one."

"Laura, if you respect Carmilla, then you should respect her Mother too."

Carmilla opened the door and saw her girlfriend, Mother, and Van Helsing outside.

"Mama?"

"Hello Mircalla."

"You didn't call me Little Mir."

"You said you were too old for it."

"Well, maybe I'm not."

Laura turned towards Carmilla, "How can you just forgive her after what she's done?"

"Because of this."

She took out the flier with a sketch of her and a reward for any information of her whereabouts.

Laura looked at it, "She never gave up on you."

She faced Annika, "I'm sorry for getting upset at you, it's just that Carmilla's been through a lot and you coming into the picture hasn't made anything better."

"No need for apologies. I appreciate that you care about my daughter. I need time to come to terms with her being a vampire.

May we go inside?

It's quite cold."

"Come on in."


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: Dr. Whale** **is** **going to die, but I'm not sure how.**

Dr. Whale, the cowardice weasel, had hid behind Emma's car as he watched his "Subject A", also known as Annika Karnstein, enter the mayor's home. He wanted to get his revenge for Annika trying to harm him. If he was kidnapped by some crazy scientist, then he would want to get away from them too.

He was going to wait until the right opportune moment to hurt Annika and if that means hurting her daughter, then he would do it. He was willing to do anything to get his revenge. Revenge was what inspired him to do whatever he wanted to do.

He crept slowly towards the house and hid underneath the window so that he could try to hear everything that was said.

 **xxx**

Emma was angry that Carmilla's mother had the nerve to come in here after making Carmilla feel like utter shit. She did feel a connection to the brat when it came to growing up as an orphan.

Carmilla might've had her adoptive mother, but she had just used her. She wanted to rip this woman's head off, but Regina gave her a look to stay calm.

Regina stood up to shake the mysterious woman's hand, "Hello, my name is Regina Mills and this is my girlfriend, Emma Swan."

Annika shook her hand, "It's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Annika Karnstein. Your home is very beautiful. It reminds me of my own home."

"Thank you very much. I chose this house because it seems like royalty could live here. Please sit down."

"Little Mir, may I sit next to you?"

"Yes, Mama, please."

Carmilla moved so that her Mother could be on one side of her while Laura was on the other.

Laura wanted to say more to Annika, but she decided not to. It was odd for her to see Carmilla so vulnerable and refer to this woman as "Mama".

Whenever she used to talk about her, it was as though Annika was exactly like The Dean.

She told Laura how she was abandoned by the person she loved the most in her world.

"What happened to the woman that did this to you?"

"She's taken over my university and there's so much havok occuring there too. Laura and I decided to leave because it was like a majority of the people imagined that _we_ should save the day. I couldn't take the pressure."

"You're not the type to give up so easily."

"No I'm not, but that situation seemed so helpless."

Laura squeezed Carmilla's hand reassuring her and she mouthed the word, "Thank you".

"I have an urgent matter that we must discuss."

"What is it?"

"Dr. Whale."

Carmilla's calm expression had disappeared and was replaced with something that Laura had never seen before.

It was like the room became so much colder by the way that Carmilla was acting.

Laura could see that her vampire girlfriend was trying to keep her fangs from appearing out of rage.

Fangs, in general, were affected by one's mood. Pleasure and anger brought them out, unwillingly, at times.

"I think he should be buried six feet under."

"Mircalla, a life, as horrible as that man's, shouldn't die."

"But what he did to you is unforgivable! He kept you a prisoner for some twisted experiment. I can't let him hurt you again."

"Sweetheart, he won't."

"How can you be so sure of it?"

"He's chained up and far away from here."

Emma sighed, "As Sheriff of this town, I can't let you just chain our citizens in unknown areas no matter how much I hate that sleazeball."

"Emma, we don't call Dr. Whale a sleazeball!"

"But he is one and worse! I'm not using colorful words right now because it would be unprofessional."

Carmilla chuckled, "When have you ever been professional?"

"Right now, Kid."

"I'm not a Kid, I'm older than you!"

Annika smiled, "I'm older than you, Mircalla."

Laura helped herself relax, "So how about me, Carm, and her Mom stay here while you three check on Dr. Whale? We'll be totally fine here!"

Regina nodded, "Laura has a point. The three of them are more than able to handle themselves. Van Helsing, what's your opinion?"

"Detaining this Dr. Whale is essential."

Emma, Regina, and Van Helsing prepared to leave.

The man took out his crossbow and laid it down on the table in front of the three women.

"I have more weapons on me. I feel better knowing you have it. How many of you know how to wield one?"

Carmilla and Annika raised their hands.

"Excellent, then there will be no issues moving onward. Farewell, Anniks, and be safe."

"You too, Van Helsing."

He put a hand on his hat and tipped it forward the way cowboys do after saying, "Ma'am."

 **xxx**

The three of them easily made their way there by Regina using her magic to teleport them there.

Van Helsing gripped onto a tree after.

"I can handle a magic bean, but that was ten thousand times worse."

They entered the house and Van Helsing ran over to the chains.

"How did he get free? He was chained down!"

Emma bent down, "I found a key." The silver key shimmered in the moonlight.

"How quickly can you send us back?"

"I can get us to the house."

"On second thought, I will run back. I trust you, but I do not trust magic."

"We will see you there."

Regina tried to teleport her and Emma back, but nothing happened.

"What the hell?"

"Something's preventing me from using my magic."

"Maybe he did something?"

"We need to walk, my magic is useless here!"

The three of them walked back and they were angry because it takes a while to get back to Storybrooke.

 **xxx**

Dr. Whale unlocked the door and quietly made his way to where the three women were.

"Do you smell that?"

"Smell what, Darling?"

"It smells horrid."

Laura shook her head, "I don't smell anything, Carm. Maybe you're so nervous that you're smelling things?"

"Yeah, maybe you're right."


	23. Chapter 23

Dr. Whale would've shouted with glee as he had made it past such a literal bloodthirsty killer if he didn't risk being murdered.

He decided to creep up the stairs and wait in the guest room, where he could see that Laura and her girlfriend, Carmilla were staying at. He found the closet and hid in there with his scalpel in his hand.

Revenge would be so sweet for him if he could be the one to torture Carmilla and Annika at the same time. Annika had made him look like a fool and he wanted to see Carmilla crumble once more.

He lay in wait as he heard those soft footsteps walking up the stairs and into the room. He faced the clothes and tested out the sharpness of his blade while cutting into them as he could hear Laura change.

He might be a killer, but he was not a Peeping Tom.

He double checked its sharpness before walking over to the bed and putting the scalpel to Laura's throat.

"One move or scream and you will regret it. I have killed many people in my day as well as reanimated them, some successful and some not. If you don't wish to be on my "murder" list, then I suggest you come with me quickly and quietly."

He picked up a heavy coat with one hand and gave it to Laura as she stood up.

"You threaten to kill me and then you give me a coat so I don't catch a cold? You Fairytale Villains are very odd and I thought vampires were a hard concept."

"Out the window."

"Shoes."

He picked up her tennis shoes and handed them to her.

"You really believe my threats?"

"Why wouldn't I? You trapped Annika Karnstein for _years_. What would you do to me?"

"Nothing vile. You're a human, I'm a human, so there's a different type of bond that we share."

"Who cares if we're both human? In my opinion, you're only one physically. Other then that, you're a cruel person to keep Carmilla's Mother a prisoner! Do you know how long she hoped that her _real_ Mother would come rescue her from her horrible adoptive Mother?"

"Annika Karnstein has told me the story countless of times. Her memory was beginning to fade of that night, but she _always_ remembered everything pertaining to her daughter. The look of terror on her face, the regret she had felt for being unable to protect her, and the love she felt for her only daughter.

Memory is a tricky thing. Your memory becomes altered as time passes and if you wanted, you can fill in bits and pieces of your memory that don't exist."

They approached the window and Laura opened it up.

"After you."

"This is two stories high."

"There's ivy on the side, you can climb down it, it's not poisonous."

"Fine, but when Carmilla comes for you, I'm not saving your ass."

"I never imagined that you would."

Laura climbed down the ivy and a few moments later, Dr. Whale followed suit.

Dr. Whale held the scalpel to her back, but not enough to harm her.

Laura was so pissed that she allowed this guy to kidnap her.

All her training with her Dad never mentioned what to do if a mad scientist came after you with a scalpel when you were getting ready to sleep!

It was freezing cold, so she was thankful that Dr. Whale at least let her wear a giant coat to keep her warm and tennis shoes.

He might be a terrible man, but he was human.

She, of course, wouldn't admit that.

 **xxx**

Carmilla and her Mother were having such a deep conversation that neither of them heard anything until the window opened.

"What the hell was that?"

Annika growled, "I can smell that man's scent."

"Dr. Whale was here? Why didn't you tell me?!"

"I didn't recognize it until now, it wasn't strong enough."

"It was what I smelled before!"

"Mir, I didn't know."

"Don't touch me. I have to rescue my girlfriend."

Carmilla raced up the stairs into her room that she shared with Laura and jumped out the window, landing easily like a cat.

She thought that her and her Mother were trying to fix their loving relationship, but that wasn't the case anymore. As she was trying to fix everything, she wasn't able to protect the woman that she loves.

Carmilla heard her Mother walk out the front door and was right next to her.

"I won't forgive you for this if she dies."

"He might be a vile man, but he won't harm her because she's a _human_. You and I are not. He sees Van Helsing as a threat, but he fears the man."

"How do you know Van Helsing?"

"It was a long time ago, Mir, I don't wish to discuss this. We need to find your love, now."

Carmilla wanted to keep interrogating her, but she would save it for later.

The two of them followed Dr. Whale's and Laura's foot imprints in the dirt.

Carmilla was able to track them by her vision and scent while Annika was a trained hunter.

She had gone hunting with her husband for sport, but neither of them killed the animal that they hunted. They would compete to see who could catch the animal, with the white ribbon around its neck like a collar first.

 **xxx**

"I can't decide who I'll murder first, you or Van Helsing!"

"Emma!"

"What? I have to _walk_ back after my legs are giving me hell! You two can travel a hell of a lot faster than I can and my magic is being a dick, so I can't teleport either. I have chased people down like nothing, but my legs don't cooperate on ground like this."

Emma was knocked down by someone that crashed into her in full force.

She was tangled up with a younger woman.

"It's not what it looks like, Regina!"

"Emma? Move!"

"Carmilla, you get your hands off my boob!"

"This isn't a game, dammit! Emma, Dr. Whale has her."

Emma finally shoved Carmilla off of her.

"Has who? Slow down, Kid."

Carmilla would normally tell Emma to shut up, but she didn't.

The three hundred year old vampire was actually crying.

"He has her and…and I was too slow, so I don't know what he'll do to her!"

Regina bent down to wipe Carmilla's tears away while Emma hugged her on the ground.

"We'll go get her, okay? Dr. Whale's a creep, but he won't do anything horrible."

Carmilla couldn't stop crying.

Van Helsing bent down until he was eye to eye with Carmilla.

"I will take great pleasure in ripping him to pieces. I know that you have spent years trying to erase your past, so I will be more than happy to do the deed."

He stood up, "Annika, would you do the honors?"

Annika had stepped out of the shadows and didn't make a step towards her daughter.

It wasn't because it caused her heart to break seeing her crying, but because if her daughter wanted her comfort, then she would call for her.

Van Helsing offered his hand and Annika took it.

Carmilla watched them leave together and for a second, it looked as though they were actually holding hands like a loving couple would.

When she looked once more, they weren't holding hands at all.

She repeatedly wiped her tears away.

"Get off of me!"

She shoved Emma off, a little bit too roughly.

"Sorry."

"S'okay Kid, I've dealt with worse."

"Th-Thank you both. I didn't mean to…"

Regina put her hand underneath Carmilla's chin so that she could look at her, "No need to ever feel embarrassed for crying or being emotional. There's strength in your tears."

"I just feel so weak and tired."

"We'll take you home."

"No! I have to help Laura."

"You can't help Laura in this state."

"Come here, Kid."

Emma helped Carmilla stand up and dusted herself off.

"I can carry you if you want. I know it's weird, but you look worn out."

"Piggy back ride."

"What?"

"I want one of those, don't hold me in your arms because it'll tire you out more."

Emma bent down on her knees, "Hurry up before I change my mind!"

Carmilla climbed onto Emma's back and held onto her as Emma began to walk.

Regina rubbed Carmilla's back a little.

"They'll take care of him and bring Laura back, Sweetheart."

"Promise?"

"I promise."


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: I do have a very violent scene with what Annika does. I will have this scene marked off with a warning before it happens and symbols like "vvv".**

 **If you pass that scene, it "sums up" what was done to Dr. Whale.**

 **xxx**

Van Helsing and Annika were walking side by side towards the house that now held a new prisoner, Laura.

"Did you ever tell Carmilla about us?"

"Of course not, but my husband knew. We didn't get married for love, it was just an arrangement. My Father was in debt and marriage would erase our debt that we owed the Karnstein's."

"He eventually learned to love me, so he said. He never raised a hand against me or anything of that sort. He was a gentleman, just like you."

"If you take me for a jealous man, then you're mistaken."

"How could you be jealous when you knew that you had won my heart?"

Van Helsing sighed, "Annika, I can't let you go in."

"Why not?"

"You have bad memories here and what if he captures you once more? I cannot save you and Laura."

"Who said I can't defend myself?"

"Please, Annika, do this for me!"

Van Helsing never said "please" to anybody or beg, but he was now.

He was terrified of the thought of losing Annika because he wanted to have more time with her and he could focus on rescuing Laura.

"I will be out here incase he comes out in this direction."

"Do you need any weapon?"

"No, I can tear him apart with my hands and teeth."

Van Helsing would be impressed if she could do that.

 **xxx**

Dr. Whale had Laura sitting in a chair with a scalpel to her neck by the time Van Helsing had reached the basement of his home.

"This place would look nicer if it wasn't deep in the woods or look so dreary and run down."

"Speak yourself, Van Helsing."

"You invite me here and now, I feel so unwelcome."

"You can go to Hell!"

"Already been there, Dr. Whale, dear old friend."

"Can you _save_ me instead of having a heart-to-heart talk? No offense, but I would like to not get my throat cut, thanks."

Dr. Whale smiled, "Where are my manners?"

Laura rolled her eyes, "You have them? Jeez, I would've never guessed."

"I will release her under one condition."

"What is that?"

"If I trade her for Annika."

Van Helsing showed his teeth and it reminded Laura of the villain Jaws from the James Bond movies.

Annika had come out of the shadows, "Van Helsing, do not waste anymore time on that useless man. Just do as he says."

"No, I won't allow you to become a prisoner again!"

"Laura has a long life to live, but you and I have lived our lives to the fullest."

Annika watched as Dr. Whale let go of Laura and didn't approach him until Laura was out of harm's way. Van Helsing only allowed the older woman to approach because she was willing to sacrifice herself for a young woman she barely knew.

When Annika was in Dr. Whale's clutches, he threw his scalpel at Laura, but Van Helsing had jumped in front of it to protect the young woman.

Van Helsing clutched onto the scalpel and fell down, "I never thought that I would be taken out like this."

He didn't bother pulling it out because he could bleed to death if he did.

"No, you can't die because I read the book about your life and…"

"It was a myth. I'm a human just like you."

"How can you live as long as Carmilla?"

"I did have a curse put on me, but I was told that I would die by a sharp object piercing in my heart. When this happened, nothing would bring me back."

"Y-You can't die on me, you got that? We can find something to cure you!"

"Not this time."

"Don't die on me! Annika and Carmilla would never forgive me if you did. So you have to stay alive."

He started coughing up blood, "It's too late, Laura."

He took off a necklace that he had under his shirt and put it in her hand, "Give this to Annika."

Laura held onto it tightly and was crying even if she barely knew anything about this man.

"It's safe with me, Van Helsing."

"Thank you."

The man known as Van Helsing, the Legendary Hunter, was dead.

 **xxx**

 **A/N: This is the violent scene, so please feel free to scroll down to "skip" this part.**

 **vvv**

Annika had launched herself at Dr. Whale, who cried out and dropped his scalpel. He was cowering on the floor and pleading for his life, his mortal life.

"You would be dead without me!"

"It's obvious that death couldn't stop me. I have looked death in the eyes and won."

"Tell me one thing before you kill me."

"What is it?"

"Were you truly insane or did you just "play" with me when I had you chained to the floor?"

"I will let this question haunt you, you pathetic excuse of a man."

She bent down towards his throat as if to intimately kill him, only to dig her teeth into his flesh. There was a lot of blood pouring down from his throat as he kept gasping for air as his eyes turned lifeless. Her nails began tearing at him until he was only bones.

 **vvv**

Annika had done to Dr. Whale the exact same thing that Carmilla had done to the evil woman that turned people into gingerbread cookies except she was covered in blood.

 **xxx**

She left whatever remains of Dr. Whale on the floor and she bent down to Van Helsing's body. She had closed his eyes and Laura handed her his necklace.

"Thank you, Laura. I'm so sorry that you had to see that."

Laura thought that Annika was crying, but it was just blood dripping down from her eyes.

"Our name, Karnstein, has a mystery about it. It refers to _cairn_ , a collection of stones that are used to mark a grave or refers to the German word for _carnivore_. Either way, our family brings death and we do it in blood."

Van Helsing's necklace was in a shape of a shield with _Annika Karnstein_ surrounding the border of it. In the middle was a grotesque looking Griffin with eyes that could look into anyone's soul.

"I can't believe that this foolish man kept it all this time."

"He really loved you then."

"He loves me as much as Carmilla loves you."

Annika carefully took the scalpel out of his heart and threw it so it landed on the floor with a clatter.

She picked up Van Helsing's body as though he was weightless.

"I will bring him home and bury him with my family, where he belongs."

"What do I tell Carmilla?"

"Tell her that if she needs me, I will be in our home. It's a large castle in Styria, you cannot miss it. It was a pleasure meeting you, I just wished it wasn't under these circumstances.

Perhaps in another life, things would be different. One thing I know for sure is that Carmilla would've found you and loved you as much as she does now. She would do that in every lifetime that she lived."

"Thank you for saving me, a stranger."

"You reminded me of a young Van Helsing, someone that I fell in love with no matter how hard I tried not to. There's something that draws us to kind hearted souls. I believe it is because we're damaged in our own way. We don't expect anybody to "fix" us or "save" us, we need someone to help us _heal_. You have helped Carmilla heal and I saw it by the way she looks at you and defends you."

Annika and Laura went outside of the house and the older woman turned towards her.

She had a soft smile gracing her lips, "Don't be a stranger now, Dear."

Laura nodded, "I hope you have a safe journey home."

"I will, thank you. I know that I will be happier once Van Helsing is home with me. He would've rather died by protecting ones that he loved rather than die a coward like Dr. Whale."

Laura saw the sun was rising and Annika was walking towards it, the light devouring the shadows. She couldn't tell if the sun was burning her or if the light was just swallowing her whole.


	25. Chapter 25

Laura had finally entered Regina's home and all of a sudden Carmilla was looking her over.

"Did he hurt you? Where are you hurt? You have blood all over you. What the hell happened?"

"Carm, deep breath."

Laura could tell that Carmilla had been crying because instead of regular tears, she had blood stains, which meant that it caused her to physically hurt.

"Let's sit down and I'll tell you, okay?"

Carmilla nodded and sat down as Laura explained everything.

"She's gone."

"Yeah, but Carm, she told me something."

"What was it?"

"That she'll be waiting for you at home, whenever you are ready to see her again."

Carmilla remained quiet until she said, "Speaking of home, we need to go back to where we belong too."

Emma frowned, "No way, you guys have become family!"

"I can't keep running away, Emma. I appreciate all you, Regina, and everyone else has done for me and Laura. I can't repay you in any way, but when things settle down, you can visit us. We're at Silas University."

"Never heard of it."

"I never heard of Storybrooke until I got here."

"We'll see you then, but first, you need to sleep, both of you."

Laura mumbled, "Not tired."

"Liar."

"Carmilla can't sleep."

"It's been an exhausting day, so I _do_ want to sleep. Let's go to bed, okay?"

"Okay."

"I'm only going to bed because you're a cutie."

"Shut up, Carm!"

 **xxx**

The sunlight poured into their window, blinding them as they got ready.

"That damn sun is going to kill me one day."

"That's not funny."

"Who's laughing?"

Laura rolled her eyes, "We need to beat the sun, come on."

"Let's wait until it gets cloudy."

"How do you know it'll get cloudy?"

"It looks like it's going to rain."

"There are no clouds!"

"My phone says otherwise."

 **xxx**

Everyone was there to say farewell to them and Laura hugged everyone that she could.

Carmilla only hugged the three people that meant the most to her and they were Emma, Regina, and Ruby. She held onto Regina for the longest though.

"Don't be a stranger, Punk! I will miss kicking your ass."

"Shove it, you old fart!"

"Stop being so gay with each other, you're gonna make me puke."

"You're one to talk!"

Regina rolled her eyes, "Children, be quiet so that I can say goodbye to Laura."

She held onto Laura for a long while before letting her go, "You watch over your girlfriend. She's stronger now than she was before. She might struggle here and there, but I know that you'll always be there for her."

"Of course I will, rain or shine."

"Speaking of rain…"

"Time to go Babe, wave farewell!"

"Fine, but only because you said so."

"You're so whipped that you can make whip cream!"

"Shut up, Blondie!"

Laura smiled, waved, and pushed Carmilla over the edge of Storybrooke.

Carmilla panicked a little until she saw Laura come out.

"Now you know how I felt."

"Sorry."

"Promise to never do something that stupid again?"

"I promise."

"You better!"

"I do, Creampuff!"

"What do we do now?"

"We return to Silas and do what needs to be done."

"And if we fail?"

"We won't, Laura."


End file.
